YouTube/Google Video

I'm mind boggled by all of the things that are on the internet nowadays. Ever wonder why it is so easy for identities to be stolen?

I'm not sure I would use YouTube or any of these types of sites since I do like some semblance of privacy. I might use them if I can password it for just family and friends and I'm sure that is an option. I just haven't delved that far into it yet.

For my exercise, I chose to revisit Tucson, Arizona. I spent three summers there while taking classes for my master's degree in Info Resources and Library Science from the U of A. I really enjoyed Tucson even though it was blazing hot. It is just a whole different atmosphere and I love the saguaros! http://www.flickr.com/photos/7298460@N03/3396899427/

Here is a video from YouTube of a tour through Sabino Canyon http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dqPNSOmUG8

and another of the renovations at San Xavier Del Bac Mission
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaXFtveYq2o Visit the website at http://www.sanxaviermission.org/

What I think is wonderful about the internet and 2.0 tools like YouTube, Flickr, etc is that I have an opportunity to visit places via video and photos that I will probably never get to see in this lifetime. I find that very valuable, on a personal as well as educational level.

Podcasts

I'm not quite done with Flickr yet. I still want to explore that further. However, in the interest of time, I wanted to move on, so here I am at podcasts. I like the idea of a library using these as a media tool, a "what's happening at the library" weekly podcast (or daily if you are a really busy public library).

I used podcastalley.com to search for 'library' and came up with a lot of hits, so there are a lot of library's and library junkies using this tool. I looked at podcasts like 'the library channel' and 'open stacks' but avoided that one titled 'erotic xpression'. After all, I am on a state computer and the title of that one scared me a little. Maybe I'll explore that one when I am at home on my own computer. Of course, it may be a book talk program, who knows?

I also did some other searches for things like national public radio and Black Hills. There really are a lot of podcasts out there. I think, though, that unless it is related to my job, I would probably not use them much.

Flickr photo

Success! This photo is from a Fall 2007 1880 train ride that we took from Hill City to Keystone and back. Great colors. I recommend a ride on the train if you have the chance. Last Christmas, we took the Christmas train ride. They had it all decorated up, we sang songs, rode the train up to "the North Pole" where Santa's house was all lit up. Santa got on the train with us there and rode back to Hill City. Wonderful for the kiddos!



Here is a link to a Flickr photo of one of my other favorite things to do in the Hills! Yes, Sturgis is almost upon us and I am excited to be heading to the Aerosmith show on August 5.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8759441@N02/964090357/

Flickr and more

So far, I have my Flickr account created. But first, I had to create a Yahoo account. I chose to create a Gmail account at the beginning of the 2.0 Challenge. Now I wish I'd done a Yahoo account instead. I really don't need four email addresses, but now that is what I have. Fellow 2.0 bloggers, is there a 2.0 tool that keeps track of the seemingly hundreds of usernames/passwords that I have for emails, Facebook, LibraryThing, Flickr, State Library listservs, bank accounts, Ning, Twitter, Delicious, Bloglines, and on, and on, and on.....?

More Flickr later. I also saw Daria's IGoogle page the other day and decided that I must have one of those as well.

Gotta love 2.0

RSS

I have had a Bloglines account for probably a good year now, and I don't know what I'd do without it.

I have lots of library blogs saved here, plus some news RSS feeds so I can stay up to date on the headlines. I think it is an important thing for a reference librarian to be aware of headlines because you never know when someone is going to call and ask about something related to what is going on in the world or locally. I usually just glance at the headlines. Once in a while, I'll click on the link to the story just because I think I need additional info. 99% of my Bloglines feeds are library related, with the exception of CNN. I also check the Rapid City Journal and Keloland news online, but I don't have RSS feeds set up for them. It has just become a habit for me to check those.

Twitter

I have a Twitter account. I set it up a couple month's back for the sole purpose of the Foundation Center online network days conference. It was recommended that participants of this conference have a Twitter or LinkedIn account.

I must admit I had not logged for over a month until today. I follow a couple things, and I have some followers. That makes me feel sort of bad since I really don't get on there to update what I am doing. Maybe that makes me one of the Twitterers I've read about recently that sign up because it's cool, then never bothers to update. I do, however, log in and update my Facebook page quite often.

I also feel that most of my posts during the week would be rather boring..."updating the 2.0 blog"; "working on a PPT presentation"; "getting ready for a meeting"; "lunch time". I'm not sure that it would be the greatest use of my work time, and I rarely get on the computer at home at night.

I can certainly see uses for Twitter. Recently a large soccer tournament was held in Sioux Falls. Someone (a coach, manager, media person...I don't remember) was using Twitter to update games. This, I'm sure, was great for the folks back home who did not make it to SF. This gave them instant updates on who scored, who had the ball, etc. Definitely useful in that respect.

State Library move

I thought I'd try to get into the habit of blogging, so I am updating you all on the move at the State Library. :-)

Yesterday half of the staff moved their offices downstairs into the new office space. Everything seemed to go smoothly except for a couple of "no electricity" issues that were fixed by day's end. Today the remainder of the staff will move. There is nothing like moving to force one to purge stuff. I have found statistics way back to the 70's that were still in a file drawer.

Our public area looks really nice. We have new furniture. New tables are still on the way. We are hoping to do some nice displays out there.

Most of the staff now works out of cubicles. I don't mind it except that my back is to traffic that walks by, and that feels kind of weird. If you study feng shui, as I do, having your back to traffic is not a good thing! Hopefully I can hang a mirror at some point.

7 1/2 lifelong learning habits

7 ½ Habits - easiest vs. hardest

Begin with the end in mind – this seems to be easiest. Whether the goal is to learn something that can be used in my job, or to learn something new “just because I’m curious”, it is easy to determine the goal

Accept responsibility for your own learning – On a personal level, this is the hardest for me. At work, it is very easy for me to sign up for webinars and tutorials because I am focused and know that I have eight hours in my work day to complete whatever and learn new things too. After work, it is hard for me to not get distracted by life in general. So on a personal level, to sign up for an online class or even read a how-to book of some sort takes coordination and determination to actually set aside my personal time to do it

Hello 2.0

I've always thought about creating a blog. Now I've actually done it thanks to the State Library 2.0 challenge. My personal challenge will be to come up with creative things to blog about once the challenge is complete.