#23 Is this the end or just the beginnin ...

This is the beginning ... I'm proud that I completed all 23 1/2 Things (sorry that it's not in order) and know that I have so much more to learn. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to participate in this program. My favorite exercises were exploring Flickr, learning about RSS feeds, technorati, and Library Thing. I will be more open to wikis, and will read blogs by John Blyberg and David Lee King, since I've gotten over feeling that I'm intruding. I'm off to read more about the meebo me widget. Did I just say that? Yes, I did....

Oh, and count me in if you offer another discovery program.

#22 Audio Books

I browsed the Queens Library audio books feature and found a decent selection of general fiction/nonfiction titles. The audio books are easy to access and the instructions are user friendly. One feature that's noticably missing for me is that the descriptions don't include the names of actors reading the books. I'm also curious as to why only one copy per title is available. A couple of titles that I was interested in were not available. Two titles that were - All the Flowers are Dying by Lawrence Block and 81 Famous poems, an audio component to the Norton Anthology of Poetry.

#21 Podcasts, Smodcasts

I went to Podcast.net and did a search on children's book reviews. I found two podcasts - Book Voyages and lawitchkids. Book Voyages has 115 episodes but nothing new since 2006. lawitchkids is a podcast for parents in LA. I also searched for children's picture book podcasts and found 9 podcasts. Of these 9, I thought Children's Book Radio sounded interesting, but again, it hasn't been updated since 2006.

Podcastalley.com - I did the same two searches and 200 results for both search terms popped up.Book Bytes for Kids sounded good, and seems to be up and running. Here's the link: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/bookbitesforkids/feed

#17 1/2 Explore Facebook and Social Networking

I read through the Top Facebook applications for librarians. The applications that I liked best were Books I Read, My Flickr, and del.icio.us. Least favorite was my aquarium - not that I hate fish or anything - just didn't think I would have a use for it. I'm not surprised that 128,000 users do use this application. I don't like the zombies application and wonder who the 168,000 users are and where they live. Customers would probably like my aquarium, zombies and My Flickr. Teens especially would like SuperPoke.

#17 Playing Around with Wikis

I spent some time exploring wikiHow. 3 items of interest and probably why I still don't completely get wiki, unless it's work related -

How to cheat on a book report
How to color in a coloring book
Last, but not least, how to keep friends from stealing your lighter.

I believe that I have just wasted 3-4 minutes of my life on wikiHow. But, in keeping with the assignment, I added the second warning to the wiki on How to color in a coloring book.
http://www.wikihow.com/Color-in-a-Coloring-Book#Warnings

#16 Wiki Me This

I'm not a big fan of wikis and admit to trying to avoid this activity. But, after exploring a few, found that they have something to offer. Library Success: A Best Practices Wiki is very informative. The EZ Library Programming Directory, created by the Mid-Atlantic Library System, provides creative program ideas. I know I will refer to this wiki again. I also found a Library Outreach Wiki that offered workshop hints, workshop programming with hooks, and computer class handouts.

#15 On Library 2.0 and Web 2.0

I enjoyed reading different perpectives on Library 2.0 and Web 2.0, especially Michael Casey and Laura Savastinuk's article "Library 2.0: Service for the next-generation library. Casey and Savastinuk write that Library 2.0 focuses on "user-centered change", where customers are involved and actively participate in the library experience. John Blyberg's article "11 Reasons why Library 2.0 exists and matters" points out that L2 is revolutionary, that it isn't all theory, and that it's "essential for survival".

I think that a basic understanding of Library 2.0 is essential. Delivering excellent customer service in the future will require focusing on who our customers are, and investing in L2 components that personalize the library and make it relevant.

#14 Getting not-so-technical with Technorati

I did a keyword search for Learning 2.0 and found 17,593 posts, 879 blogs, and 1,454 tags. It's overwhelming to say the least, but I explored a few and found The Bamboo Project blog and an article which caught my attention - "Don't Want to Look Stupid in Front of Your Customers? Start Playing with Social Media Inside Your Organization.
I searched popular blogs and found boingboing.net's blog. A couple of items caught my attention, particularly a link to phone company recordings archives at
http://www.payphone-directory.org/sounds.html

#13 Tag! You're It

I read us.ef.ul, a beginner's guide to The Next Big Thing, which helped explain in easy terms why I should be using del.icio.us. It makes sense to me and so I signed up for a del.icio.us account. I have tons of bookmarks at home, but find that I rarely look at them. Now, I'll be able to access useful children's picture book, reference sites, etc. from work. It seems more manageable to me.

I was surprised to find that ALSC was the only children's bookmark found on the ql things page. I thought there would be more. I searched ql things/teens and found a YALSA podcast featuring an interview with Anastasia Goodstein about her book, Totally Wired: What Teens and Tweens are Really Doing Online. Also found Library Youth and Teen Services 2.0 blog.

#9 Feeding Frenzy

I'm trying to catch up today. As far as feeds go I prefer topix.net and technorati.

Topix
-nice layout.
-user-friendly
-easy to search most popular/top stories.

Technorati
-nice layout
-user-friendly
-easy to search posts, blogs, videos and photos. I liked that technorati gives you the option of searching popular and top favorited blogs

I did a search on picture books (26,746 items) and was happy to find onemorebook.com's podcast about children's books.

Syndic8.com
-didn't like the layout, thought it was confusing.

Feedster-went to feedster but it wasn't up. Received the message that "we'll be back soon". Maybe next time...

#18 Let's Collaborate & have a good time

I've got to say that this headline is bringing back lots of memories for me. Anyway, I signed up for Thinkfree but didn't like it. I kept getting error messages and was not able to type a document. I also tried looking at examples and they wouldn't load. I gave up. Writeboard was very easy to use. I wrote a small document, saved it, then went back and edited it. It's easy to identify changes made to a document which would be useful for group projects, brainstorming ideas, working on presentations, etc.

#19 Discovering Web 2.0

I explored the list of Web 2.0 nominees and winners and
millionmasterpiece.com, described as "the world's largest collaborative arts project", caught my attention. I recently started learning to draw, and this project seems like fun. People from all over the world are sending in their doodles and artwork to help create one large piece of art. I think it would be fun to participate in the project - be a part of something that's making news.

#20 YouTube

I explored YouTube and spent part of the afternoon watching music videos. I was excited to find a live 1984 video of the Style Council singing "You're the best thing". This video is special to me because I asked the dj to play it at my wedding back in 1988. Although the marriage didn't last, the song remains one of my all time favorites. I tried to include it in this post but for some reason it's not working, and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong. Anyway, it's a beautiful song. I also watched some videos of watercolor painting and making origami frogs and stars. YouTube has some great instructional videos posted. As far as YouTube's usefulness on library websites, maybe QL could post some basic instructional videos for customers about what we offer.

#12 Roll your own search engine

Rollyo is useful. I found it was simple to create a search roll. I'm sure this will help at work, since I always intend to create lists of links that I find useful, but don't always get around to organizing. I created a simple search roll for children's books with five sources. Here's the link: http://rollyo.com/nasin/childrens_books

#11 Thing This: Library Thing

Library Thing is confusing me or maybe I'm confusing Library Thing. Maybe it's because I've been in all day trying to catch up on the assignments. Anyway, I created an account on Library Thing and started cataloging some of the books I've read. I tried to upload the list to the blog but kept getting error messages. Here, I hope, is a link to my account - http://www.librarything.com/catalog/nasin

#10 Play around with Image Generators

I went to the Generator Blog and had fun playing around with generators. I went to Photo Spread Effect generator, and uploaded an image. I also tried http://www.magmypic.com

to create this cover.

#8 Make Life Simple with RSS

RSS? Never heard of it, never noticed RSS feed icons on websites, and, until recently, didn't know what I was missing. After reading about RSS, I created a Bloglines account and subscribed to 15 newsfeeds, some for fun, others work related. Subscribing to newsfeeds was easy, and almost addictive. I found it hard to stop subscribing at 15 but will see how it goes before I sign up for more. I like the variety of RSS newsfeeds available, and that it's easier and faster than checking email.

#7 Blog about Technology

Hmm - blog about something technology related. In the past month, I shopped online for shoes and handbags. I found and watched a video of Love and Affection, one of my favorite songs by Joan Armatrading, on YouTube, listened to Danielia Cotton's music on myspace. I paid bills online, read book reviews, and online magazines and newletters. Can't remember what life was like before and wouldn't go back if you paid me. Well, maybe if you paid me.

#6 More Flickr Fun

Iris sanguinea
Originally uploaded by poesie

I had no idea flickr could be so much fun. It's way past midnight and i'm still exploring, looking at photos, uploading to my blog. i had no idea it was so easy. Can't wait to take some of my own pictures and post them.

#5 Discover Flickr

anini beach
Originally uploaded by nj dodge

Loved this photo because it's so far away from where I sit now. Staring at these four walls, noticing a crack in the wall that seems to have a life of its own, wishing I could redecorate, knowing I don't have the funds. This picture represents all that is peaceful and quiet, unlike my neighbor's squawking bird, and did you notice there's no sign of fire trucks or ambulances, or the screeching of cars hitting their brakes. Just off the edge of this photo, you'll catch me sipping a tropical drink, and that makes me happy.

7 1/2 Habits

I thought the tutorial on the 7 1/2 habits was great and think it would be interesting to share the information and discuss this topic with colleagues. Too often we pass up opportunities to continue learning at work. We make excuses, lose motivation, and get stuck in daily routines. Watching the tutorial reminded me how much I value lifelong learning and that it is always possible.

After reviewing the list of 7 1/2 habits, I would say that teaching and mentoring others is the easiest habit for me. I enjoy working with people, young and old, and have a lot of patience.

The hardest would be beginning with the end in mind. It's a challenge for me to set goals and stay focused. Challenging but not impossible and with time and practice has improved.

And we're off ...

So far, so good. During the last few weeks, I was on the fence about participating. Sure it sounded like fun, but will I have time to complete all of the assignments? I don't know anything about creating a blog. I've read a few, but it always seemed like I was intruding in someone else's life. What would I possibly write about? But then I realized it's not about the blog. It's about taking on a challenge and learning, not only about the technology, but who I choose to be during the process. How could I pass up an opportunity like that? I know the experience will be positive in the long run, as long as my computer behaves.