Thing 23

My final thought is to thank all those responsible for putting this program together. I can only imagine the hours it took. 23 things greatly stretched my understanding of the world of Web 2.0, as well as, provided new skills to take forward. The challenge now will be to integrate them with my media center, both professionally and personally.
I enjoyed the experience.

Thing 22

The Minitex Training and Events Webinar offerings are impressive. It is good to see the diversity of offerings --- the scope is quite something. From my own past experience I know I will need to keep my fingers in the various "things" to remember how to use them. The multitypes are going above and beyond by offering a second round of 23 things to librarians in this state.

Thing 21

I joined the Pioneerland Ning today. Otherwise, I am not currently a member of an online community (outside of Facebook which I joined as part of the 23 things). The online communities for books looked appealing, with their options to share books or conduct ongoing book discussions. I think I would be most interested in joining one of these communities.

Thing 20

I chose to register with Facebook as it had an American Library Association option. I think I can understand how this social network phenomena happened as most teens have the need to belong to a "group" and this Internet vehicle provides ready and immediate access to a group. Also, it enables global connections. A point from the video is well-taken as networking is also an important means to finding jobs, apartments, what you need, etc.

The Hennepin Library MySpace revealed that many teens and authors are interested and willing to share through this format.

Thing 19

Podcasts enable one to create a kind of private public radio menu. I listened to the 28th annual Children's Literature Workshop podcast and Wanda Erickson's sharing of her dual role as Upsala's public and school librarian from Memories for School Library Media.

I really enjoyed the Huckleberry School 1st grade read alouds of their original stories found in the Education Podcast Directory. It was evident from the readings of their dedication pages that they had been well taught the function of the dedication page! It would be fun to set up a podcast link on our school web site to share some of our students' original stories.

Thing 18: Charlotte's Web on YouTube

I chose this clip, as it was short. More importantly, Charlotte's Web was the book that revealed to me the magic of children's literature.

I thought the YouTube video links provided in the lesson were very funny! I enjoyed them.

Thing 17

Our school district has provided links through their media websites to the ELM databases for several years. My elementary students (K-4) have had limited use of the databases, not because they are not excellent, but many times the reading level of the material is just too difficult.

Personally, I used Academic Search Premier intensively in a master's program I completed in 2005. It was an especially great tool as the majority of the program was web-based.

Thing 16

What a great tool for students who have trouble with organization, time management, or motivation. It is good to see that MINITEX and MnLink have jumped on board with their own version.

If I were teaching in a secondary setting, I would definitely make this available to my students.

Thing 15

I chose the Second Life option and found the Charlotte and Mecklenburg Public Library's virtual tour about their Teen Life in Second Life illuminating. I can certainly see the appeal to teenagers and young adults as "meeting other teens in digital space" is their game. It appears to be a great forum to expose more young people to authors, politicians, etc., whom they may not have the motivation to meet in a more traditional setting. I especially liked the art gallery featuring Manga or Anime art.

I believe there is a "real" place for online virtual worlds in today's teen/young adult libraries.

Thing 14

I set up a librarything.com account about a year ago (Feb. 23, 2007 to be exact), but have not used it. We inherited a few books and cataloging them is one of those "retirement projects" I am looking forward to.

The features that looks especially attractive are tags, book covers, reading lists, and the Early Reviewer program.

I probably would not use the cataloging function in our library, but can see its applications for sharing new books and other reading lists.

The limitation is that there is a fee (albeit small) for cataloging over 200 books.

Thing 13

I set-up an iGoogle page, as spare as I could make it. I also signed up for the Google calendar and now just have to get into the habit of using it. : )

I think these tools would be very helpful for scheduling and organizing. I can see their value in communication and scheduling, most likely in a social or small business setting. A significant advantage is that they transcend platforms and software issues. I work in a building with both PC's and Macs. Sometimes there are limitations due to software and platforms. As long as browsers adequately support these programs, many frustrations could be eliminated. And, of course, they are accessible anywhere.

Thing 12

I preferred the Mixx site, in that it organized the news by category --- it was easier to scan at a glance for articles that I may be interested in reading. The other three sites appeared more random and seemed to focus more on number of "hits."

As for my media center, I would recommend the Mixx site to staff --- definitely not age-appropriate for my K-4 graders.

Whether these sites are productive or detracting, I can't judge at this point. I've decided that I'm definitely not a "social networker", but I have children who are. I suppose to some users it is valuable to be able to weigh in with their vote on what is important. And, some of these issues are very important.

Since I am now aware of them, I may read a story from what of these sites, especially if it was something that was very important to me.

Thing 11

This looks like a great organizational tool that has many applications in social, work, and/or academic areas. The tutorial explained well how it can be used in professional and academic settings. The freedom to assign your own tags or labels gives the user the ability to store and retrieve data according to their own categorizing (or that of another). It would certainly help cut down on what can soon get to be an unwieldy list of bookmarks that don't always make logical sense or order.

Working in a K-4 media center, my first inclination is to use this to build reading lists by topic, interest, reading level, etc., and share with colleagues.

I viewed the Menasha (Wis.) Public Library's delicious and clicked on "birds" which revealed related tags/subtopics. This tool has the potential to focus web searches rather quickly as well as provide another good venue for sharing information.

Thing 10

Originally, I thought wikis were taboo, as they were created by "amateurs". What is surprising is the studies that have demonstrated that wiki accuracy is not that far off from the established encyclopedias.

Wikis have opened my mind to the knowledge and collective thought of its contributors. As for any information source, they need to be critically evaluated before applied. Now, I don't think they should be limited as much.

I loved the Book Lovers Wiki from Princeton which would be fun to do in our school setting, either as a staff or student site (maybe both?).

I edited the "23 things on a stick" wiki. When it boils down, it is all about sharing good resources and information.

Thing 9

I did not really find either Zoho Writer or Google Docs significantly different or easier to use, but naturally gravitated to Google, as I like its simplicity and familiarity. I did not have to create an account, as I had an existing Google account. (One less password to remember!) I was able to import a document and edit, etc., without any difficulty.

Had I been aware of this Web 2.0 tool last week, it could have prevented a problem that resulted from attempting to e-mail a PowerPoint attachment for editing by another party. The recipient received the document, but the images did not come through, so he was unable to do the editing he wished.

I can't imagine what our Founding Fathers would think of this tool. I know that the ability to write and edit through word processing enables much faster recording and composition. Would they have appreciated that? I think so. Would the capacity for simultaneous editors have created chaos? Perhaps. The document could have read quite differently.

Thing 8

What I like best about these tools is that they transcend (for the most part) platforms and applications. Our school runs both Intel and OSX platforms and it can be a bit tricky (not to mention expensive) providing for and moving files, etc. from one platform to another --- even "flash drives" can fail us. Thumbstacks, Zoho, and Slideshare appear to be great options for universal sharing and access, while taking the hassle out of snags due to cross-platforms, upgrades, etc.

I was not aware until the "23 Things" of Picture Trail and other sites that add pizzazz to files and presentations. Although I don't have immediate application for this, I can see its use in graphic design classes for staff and students who want to jazz up their presentations. Young people would really have fun with this, as would they with other tools like Big Huge Labs. I tried downloading a trial version of Big Huge Lab, but it does not appear compatible with my home OSX machine. (Sigh . . . ) I'll try it on my school PC sometime.

Again, I had no idea that eFolio existed and was amazed at the diversity and extent of information accessible on students' and professionals' lives (including a performance recording of a professional trumpeter!) This could be a good tool for prospective employees to demonstrate an "edge" when applying for professional positions.

What I appreciate most to date about the "23 Things" is the exposure to new trends in online tools.

Thing 7

When I started as a media specialist in 1996, our K-4 building did not have email. Now, of course, it is the main form of communication within and between our school buildings. Our students do not have email accounts, but staff and parents use it for questions about resources, scheduling, overdue books, etc.

Our building has used Webinars for staff development, most recently training on our electronic report cards/grade books and NWEL MAP testing. This saved our building considerable training expense.

I am not a current user of instant messaging, but was a heavy user during my Webcohort graduate program through the University of North Texas. I have fond memories? of Sunday evenings at my home computer chatting with professors and fellow classmates. I am grateful for this form of communication and other online tools that make programs possible to anyone, nearly anywhere in the world.

The OPAL master schedule looks fantastic. I have downloaded the plug in and look forward to tuning into some of the upcoming book discussions starting with The Madness of Mary Lincoln April 10th.

Thing 6

It is great to be exposed to all the free online tools for image editing, both in terms of "aesthetic" or just ordinary desktop editing tools. There are some easy and flexible templates that have great potential for customizing graphics and presentations.

Toondoo has application for the graphic novel fans (and others) who wish to create their own graphic stories. It provides a "less traditional" creative option for expression of ideas.

Thing 5

I can't say I spent a great deal of time playing with Flickr. The Flickr jigsaws have potential in the Media Center (posters, author trading cards, or Dewey subject cards, etc?). At any rate, it is a good resource to have ready and the creative possibilities seem endless.

(I chose our cat as a Flickr jigsaw subject because she is reclining on a pillow of bird field guides with wild song birds dining on sunflower seeds right outside the window --- I love the incongruity.)

Thing 4

On the "giving" end, I have used Photoworks to create albums and photobooks to share with family. It is valuable for those "one of a kind" family portraits and photos that must be scanned to share with extended family. On the "receiving" end, I have used Snapfish to view photos and order prints of our grandson who lives in a distant locale. I can't say that one service is superior to the other --- for me it just takes time to learn each program and the features it offers. For, example, I chose Photoworks to create an "heirloom" photobook, as it had the template styles I liked.

A valuable feature of Flickr are the tags for sorting and future access. Labeling, dating, etc., of images can quickly become too large to manage. I would agree with the video that the first thing I would grab in a fire are photo negatives. Nice to know now this would not be necessary as Flickr, Photoworks or Snapfish, etc., has them backed up on a server.

I would consider using Flickr (or a similar online service) in the Media Center --- perhaps in a similar manner to what St. Bens and St. Johns are doing to hightlight books in their collections.

I am always concerned about making family or school photos made public. In our district, we go around and around about this issue. On the one hand, student names and photos are now public through online versions of local newspapers, yet we wonder how much we should publish online through our school communications and still project students.

Thing 3

I wrestled a bit with this assignment tonight. I managed to set up in my browser a bookmark for the Blogline feeds I have selected. I think RSS feeds from book review sources will be a great way to stay current. I want to add more, but have yet to determine which will be the most valuable and how much I can manage. I was unable yet to set up on my Blog a "Blogroll?" (at least that it what I think it is) to read the feeds from my Blog.

Thing 2

At this point, my knowledge of Web 2.0 tools is very limited. I suppose by registering for 23 things on a stick, I have committed to finding the time to learn more about Web 2.0 tools. Working in a K-4 building, our students have limited access to the Internet, almost always under direct supervision. The articles, however, gave me ideas on how Library 2.0 could be implemented in a primary-intermediate elementary setting, for example, a "Book Space" in which users could create profiles and share personalized reading lists and reviews. Perhaps we could start a "Book Space" with interested staff members.

I have observed over the past few years, with some interest, the use of texting, MySpace, etc., by my young adult children. "The Ongoing Web Revolution" article brings into focus "the human aspect of Web 2.0": "connections and conversations, presence, and feelings." I hope to learn more of the motivation and value of this form of communication to youth and others, as well as, the tools to use it. Perhaps John Blyberg nails it in his blog when he says we need to strive to keep libraries relevant to "engage future tax payers."

I believe the Internet is a great tool to access information, if properly applied. As media specialists we teach and caution our students to carefully evaluate all the information for its value. There is also always the concern for young students' safety. "The Ongoing Web Revolution" conveys this thought in that traditionally, "the conflict is that Web 2.0 users bare all while libraries still try to protect their user's privacy." I know that conflict exists in me.

As most of the Web 2.0 tools are foreign to me, I look forward to learning about all of them.

Thing 1

The first thing I had difficulty with was remembering what user name and password I settled on during the somewhat confusing for me registration process. The folks at CMLE were extremely gracious and just by visiting with them, it came back! Amazing!! Now on to Thing 2 . . .

Stepping Out

As I have thought about setting up this media center blog, "Martha Blah, Blah, Blah" keeps coming to mind. I may have something to say, but how much of it is worth someone else's time? I guess that is up to those who choose to read this.

I can't imagine I will be writing with great frequency, but I hope when I do, it will have some value to the reader.

I am pleased, though, to have the opportunity to participate in this program. For some time this form of communication has eluded me (along with many other Web 2.0 tools).