Week 10: Video on the Web

The Security Gate Strikes Back

Week 9: Instant Messaging

I confess. I didn't spend a lot of time this week working on instant messaging. Not enough time, and frankly not a lot of interest. It isn't that I'm opposed to IM in general. In fact, I enjoy the ability to have a sidebar conversation on Facebook chat with friends and family that is not posted on a wall for everyone to see. I also see some applications for people working across networks or distances.  In the same library, building, etc. -- not so much.  There are so many other ways for us to be communicating. Is there enough added value to encourage all of our staff to use IM too? I'm not convinced.

Beware of the Gadgets

This blog has been saved. Sigh.  Remember week 1 and the assignment of adding a gadget? I did. One I liked.  A few weeks later, I added a Facebook badge and a Twitter badge.  When I tried to catch up on work this evening, I found my blog moving toward a weird site.  Through some librarian research, I learned that the problem was most likely related to a gadget I had added. I suspected the Twitter badge and deleted it, but the problem remained. After a lot of work and adjusting of security levels, I was able to find a way to delete the problem gadget. RIP Maukie the Cat. You'll not be on this page again!

Week 8: Cloud Computing

I'd done so well keeping up with these projects, but the pace of the last two weeks has put be behind. Happily, however, my "to-do" list created a great opportunity to test this lesson.  Using Google Docs, the KLA Finance Committee is trying to put together a budget recommendation for the KLA 2010-2011 year.  I was able to get several documents posted and invitations to the committee successfully delivered. This evening, I suggested a method for members to start joint editing of a concept report. We'll see how that works.

If I were working in a small library or doing a lot of committee work of this kind, I suspect that Google Docs might be a tool I would find useful. In our library, however, we have the benefit of access to a robust City network with the ability to share network drives, folders and portals. By giving people permissions to share these access points, we regularly create and edit all kinds of documents. That is easier for me, but I'll keep cloud computing in my tool box as a reasonable workaround when I don't have the in-house team and network available for my projects.

A mid-course review

It occurs to me that I spent a week working with a technology, then tend to discard it as I move into the next week's lesson.  So that I won't completely forget where I've been, I've decided to do a weekly ranking of all of the tools that I'm experimenting with during this course, based on how likely I am to keep using them.
Here is my initial ranking.

1. Facebook
2.Blogger
3.Delicious
4.FLickr
5.Wimba
6.Opal
7.Tumblr
8.LinkedIn
9.Twitter
10. Infopeople
11. Google Reader

Week 7: Microblogging

OK. I admit it. I've never been interested in microblogging. Maybe it is my "I" preference on my Myers Briggs typology. I don't feel inclined to share my every thought with the rest of the world. Frankly, I'm not always interested in knowing that much about others either.  So, creating a Twitter account and using it took me out of my comfort zone.  Finding people to follow was both easy and difficult.  To start, I took advantage of some of the suggestions provided by Twitter. I started with a sampling of different kinds of accounts: news feeds from CNN and Library Journal; organizational accounts from the Wichita Police Department and the Kansas City Kansas Public Library; personal accounts from a literary agent friend of mine and Wichita's mayor; and 23 Things Kansas. Since it is Olympic week, I also opted to follow Apolo Anton Ohno but unfollowed within a day: surely someone was handling this account on his behalf because I can't imagine that he would have had enough time to create all of those tweets!  During the week, I tried to test looking for others to follow but the Twitter site was having problems and that option was not available.

Because I choose not to use by phone for posting and reading, I have to say that Twitter's value has been minimal to me in this limited test. I suspect I'd feel differently if I were using a more portable posting and reading method. What I appreciated most was how KCPL used their account to promote library programs much like the way we post to our Library's Facebook account. It seems to me that the challenge is to get users to start following the library. Once done, however, this does seem like a simple way to get reminders out about special news and events.

Week 6: Tagging and Social Bookmarking

Oops.  I made a note and worked on my tags and bookmarks early last week. Then I forgot to blog about them. Oh well, it was just that kind of week.  I am proud to report that I exported bookmarks not just once, but twice: from my home files as well as the ones at work.  I can't think of too many times when I've had problems needing a site that I did not have bookmarked or at the top of my memory. Perhaps that is because I am lucky enough to have remote access into our City systems from home so that my work files are never more than a login away.  If I spend a little more time with delicious I think that I'll enjoy using it. I did not find that time this week, but I did remember to add a new bookmark there instead of just at my office desktop. (Thanks, Ken, for the pointer to Faxzero!)  For an individual user, the benefit of delicious is definitely the portability of the bookmarks.  For our library, there could be great benefits for our public service staff where they are always running across new sites that would be helpful to co-workers.