I regularly listen to podcasts. I pull a lot of them down from public radio. Two of my favorites are Wait Wait Don't Tell Me from NPR, and Musicheads from MPR's new music station, The Current. I use Juice to download my podcasts automatically.
One way podcasts could be used in the library would be setting up a podcasting booth. I think that would be a great way to engage teens by enabling them to create content at the library. It wouldn't have to be anything too fancy. A PC with a microphone, audacity, and an internet connection. A booth to put it in that has decent acoustics, preferably something that could be setup and taken down easily.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Thing 18. YouTube & Other Online Video
I really got a kick out this movie. It is both entertaining and informative. I think it really displays how YouTube can be used as a reference in the library. I could also see libraries using YouTube to upload video of various events that happen at the library, or to promote upcoming events.
Thing 17. ELM Productivity Tools
I must admit I haven't used ELM much, so this was a good introduction for me. I really like the NetLibrary, but the books appear to be a bit out of date, at least the tech books are. I didn't know you could do so much with EBSCO. I will definitely be revisiting these resources.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Thing 16. Student 2.0 Tools
The two tools in this Thing seem useful. I especially like how the University of Minnesota Assignment Calculator brought together resources from many other colleges. I would have found this quite useful in college for keeping me on track. I was always the procrastinator who ended up cramming most of an assignment in the night before it was due.
Thing 14. LibraryThing
I thought Library Thing was pretty fun. I just might put my whole collection there. I did have a couple issues though. I had some time-outs when adding books. It is also buggy under Firefox.
I could see libraries using this as a place to put lists of new books. It would then be easy to add the feed to their website. Similar to the widget I added to this blog.
My library is here.
I could see libraries using this as a place to put lists of new books. It would then be easy to add the feed to their website. Similar to the widget I added to this blog.
My library is here.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Thing 15. Online Games and Libraries
I decided to skip ahead to Thing 15 because its relevant to what I am doing tonight. I am blogging from the Plainview Public Library as I help chaperone one of their GameFest nights. There are 28 kids ages 12-18 here tonight. Some are playing the Magic: The Gathering card game. Some are on the computers playing Runescape or armorgames.com. There is also a PS3 hooked up to a projector that they are playing Rock Band on. There are 2 other TV's set up with gaming consoles. Lots of fun is being had.
Plainview has had a very successful gaming program. Along with the GameFest nights, they have had various video game tournaments and are about to do another Dungeons & Dragons class. Alice went to the TechSource Gaming, Learning, and Libraries Symposium last year and came back with a lot of new ideas, especially for family gaming and intergenerational gaming. The rumor is that its going to be in Chicago again this year, but November instead of July. We'll have to keep an eye on the website to confirm that.
So, on to the actual assignment. I did Puzzle Pirates, pretty fun but I'm still more of a Runescape person.
Plainview has had a very successful gaming program. Along with the GameFest nights, they have had various video game tournaments and are about to do another Dungeons & Dragons class. Alice went to the TechSource Gaming, Learning, and Libraries Symposium last year and came back with a lot of new ideas, especially for family gaming and intergenerational gaming. The rumor is that its going to be in Chicago again this year, but November instead of July. We'll have to keep an eye on the website to confirm that.
So, on to the actual assignment. I did Puzzle Pirates, pretty fun but I'm still more of a Runescape person.
Thing 13. Online Productivity Tools
I have setup iGoogle. I don't login to it very often. Mostly just if I'm somewhere and don't have a laptop with me, or am on my ultra-portable PC. It gives a decent starting/aggregation point for the resources I use the most. I can see at as good resource for someone that doesn't have a PC at home and uses mainly library computers.
This is a bit of a re-hash of previous blog posts, but I think the Google calendar app is awesome. You can read Thing 9 to find out how I use it. Plainview Public Library uses it within their website as their events calendar. I think that is one of the great applications for a library. I do have a Remember The Milk login, but I rarely use it. The Google calendar does SMS to/from my cell phone, so I don't really need the other one any more.
I also subscribe to the Lifehacker RSS feed. They are constantly reviewing GTD apps and posting productivity hints. They are a great resource for that sort of thing.
This is a bit of a re-hash of previous blog posts, but I think the Google calendar app is awesome. You can read Thing 9 to find out how I use it. Plainview Public Library uses it within their website as their events calendar. I think that is one of the great applications for a library. I do have a Remember The Milk login, but I rarely use it. The Google calendar does SMS to/from my cell phone, so I don't really need the other one any more.
I also subscribe to the Lifehacker RSS feed. They are constantly reviewing GTD apps and posting productivity hints. They are a great resource for that sort of thing.
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