Dewey

Ugh, it's so early & I'm so tired... I went to a screening of Bruce Campbell's new movie last night, My Name Is Bruce (and here was actually there & did a short Q&A with us, OMG), and it was at midnight so I didn't get home until after 2am. Yikes! I feel so old - I can't stay up late & get up early like I used to.

Anyhow, I saw this on Rock Me Like A Librarian and had to see what my results were. I think they're pretty fitting, no?

Erica's Dewey Decimal Section:

620 Engineering & allied operations

Erica = 58931 = 589+31 = 620


Class:
600 Technology


Contains:
Health, agriculture, management, public relations, buildings.



What it says about you:
You are creative and inspired to make the world a better place. You can work hard on something when it catches your interest. Your friends have unique interests in common with you.

Find your Dewey Decimal Section at Spacefem.com

Thing #23 - Recap!

Well, here we are - the end of the Learn & Play road. Obviously, my blogging will continue, and I hope some of my colleagues will continue blogging as well. Here's my recap:

What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey?

I've enjoyed everything, but I especially enjoyed getting to know everyone better on Twitter and playing with things I hadn't used before, like the wiki sandbox and MOLDI.

How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals?

I'm definitely less afraid to try new things - I know that if I just take a little time to mess around with something new, I'll figure it out! And if I don't get it right away, I have plenty of people to ask for help.

Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you?

I have just been amazed and delighted at how much more of a "community" there is now with CML folks from all over the system. I feel much more connected to what's happening with my coworkers here at Main and in the branches. Sure, we've all learned a little bit more about technology - but we're also learning so much more about each other! It's incredible!

What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept?

Honestly, I really liked the format - go at your own pace, with some "catch up" time built in. The videos (I felt) were incredibly helpful too. I think additional things could be added for those people who finish early and want more to explore, kind of like the Read On option that kids get with SRC. Play On!

If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you again chose to participate?

In a heartbeat! I had so much fun with this program, and I think as technology changes and evolves in the coming years, we'll have much more to explore. And depending on the technology, the format might have to change accordingly - only time will tell!

Thanks to all of the library people who have been reading and commenting on my blog! And to those of you non-library people out there, it'll be business as usual soon enough. Of course, if you're sick of me talking about the library, you shouldn't be reading my blog to begin with. ;)

Cheers!

Thing #22 - MOLDI

First thought - I know us librarians love our acronyms, but MOLDI? Really? Did we have to go with that?

Second thought - OMG TREASURE TROVE OF CHEESY HORROR MOVIES!!! I <3 MOLDI!

Okay, I'm done screaming now, I promise. I'm really glad that this was one of the L&P things, because I've never explored MOLDI on my own, and it was good to know what we have available. It's also good to know that they have more bad horror movies available to watch than I have free time to watch them! Seven Mummies caught my eye first, then I found the Bigfoot Terror Collection parts 1-4, The Blood Drinkers, Raiders of the Living Dead, and so many more. (PS - Best quote from an IMDB user about Raiders of the Living Dead: "This movie took an hour and a half of my life. And I want it back." I can't wait to watch it!)

Wait, what? I was supposed to be looking for books? Oh yeah - I seem to have forgotten about that! I found "Reconciliation" by Benazir Bhutto in audio book format, which is a title I've been really wanting to read. I've never been really good about listening to audio books, but I'm pretty sure that we'll be seeing more and more demand for this kind of content. I hope that MOLDI is able to provide more titles for iPods - that would definitely make it more convenient and useful for our customers.

Thing #21 - Podcasts

I've been slacking on my learning & playing, so I'm going to try to finish up today. I only have 3 things left! If I don't get all three done today... well, then definitely by the end of the week. :)

Podcasts! I don't listen to them all of the time, but the few I subscribe to I really enjoy. Of course there is This American Life, which is pretty well known. If you aren't familiar, it's a weekly radio show that they put out as a free hour long podcast. That might seem like a really long time, but the stories they tell are usually interesting enough to hold your attention. Plus you can always do other things while listening to it, which is what I normally do. I love multitasking!

I listen to one library podcast, and that's George & Joan: Thinking Out Loud. It's usually only 20ish minutes long, and I am always inspired after listening to it. George Needham and Joan Frye Williams have great ideas and thoughts about library service and the future of libraries, and the format is very natural - they are just having a conversation, and we get to listen in! I love it.

For my daily dose of techy goodness, I watch a video podcast called WebbAlert. This is hosted by my girl-crush, Morgan Webb (of G4 & X-Play fame). It's a great way to keep up with what's happening in the technology world, and is only about 3 minutes long on average. Plus it's Morgan Webb! And she's amazing! *commence totally platonic swooning*

Okay, so enough about what I already listen to. I tried out the podcast search sites - I liked Podfeed.net the best. I found a podcast from the Lunar and Planetary Institute Library in Houston, Texas, definitely right up my alley. Usually though, I find out about podcasts the same way I do about blogs - worth of mouth.

I think it would be great if CML could implement podcasting in a useful way. We could record programs or lectures so people who couldn't make it could listen to them or view them. Staff could do a weekly book review talk for different age groups that would highlight new books that the library has available to check out. Even just a general "What's new with the library" podcast might be something our customers would be interested in. However, it requires dedication and regular updates - are we willing to do that? My biggest concern/worry is that we would start something and then not follow up with it.

Hmm, this ended up being a much longer post than I thought it would be. Stay tuned for more L&P action with Things 22 and 23!

10 Random Things

Okay, so I've been meaning to respond to a meme that The Domestic Scientist tagged me with forever ago... and I never did. Because I'm a lazy blogger. Anyhow, the meme was to list 7 things that nobody knows about you. More recently, Helene challenged us CML bloggers to write a post listing 10 random things about themselves. Well, I can't pass up two different meme requests, so I'm combining them! Here is my list of 10 random things you might not know about me:

1. I am generally a very paranoid person. I worry about what people think of me just about every minute of every day. I get easily freaked out about small stuff. Somehow I can always manage to be the calm voice of reason to other people, but never to myself.

2. I have a difficult time remembering specific things about movies - even ones I've seen multiple times. Maybe that's why I like to watch movies I've seen before, cause I'll always see something new!

3. I can't stand the taste of tea. YUCK.

4. Sometimes I can completely entertain myself with only my thoughts. I have been known to sit and stare for extended periods of time and not realize it. I'm pretty sure this is why I take ridiculously long showers, and also why I love JD on Scrubs.

5. I would be barefoot all of the time if I could be. Even at work.

6. I actually kinda like that stores put out all of their Christmas stuff way early. I like to get excited about it early too!

7. I am a total control freak, and it's really hard for me to admit it. Except that I just did, so never mind.

8. I slapped a kid in the face on my first day of my freshman year of high school. Don't worry, he totally deserved it.

9. One of my earliest memories is of sitting in a high chair, playing with a rattle, and watching my grandmother vacuum the floor. It's such a random memory, and yet it's so vivid in my mind.

10. If I could pick a second career, I would be a party/wedding planner. I think I'd be good at it too! So, you know, if this librarian thing falls through, I have options. Ha!

Vote!

Today is Election Day, and I have just one thing to say to everyone reading this blog: PLEASE get out and vote today if you haven't already. As Jared pointed out, this could be the most important election in my generation's lifetime. Of course I want MY candidate to win, but I also want everyone I know, regardless of your political views, to get out and make your voice heard. It really does make a difference.

Thing #20 - YouTube

I have a confession to make. Until just now, I'd never set up an account with YouTube. In fact, I *just* realized that since I have a Google account, I practically already HAD a YouTube account. How did I stay away from the video behemoth for so long? Well, I didn't really. I watch YouTube videos all the time. But I always thought the site was too cluttered, and I prefer uploading my own videos to Vimeo. Now, however, the site looks much cleaner and easier to use than in the past. I'm having fun customizing my profile and finding all of my favorite videos!

Here's a classic that everyone can enjoy:



You can find me on YouTube and view some of my other favorite videos here.

Thing #19 - CML Power Tools

Time again for some L&P action. This was probably the easiest & fasting thing to complete. I'm already using most of the services on the Power Tools page, so I joined in the Gmail conversation on the Tooling Around blog. Gmail is the best! I'm at work right now, but I need to remember to put the library toolbar on my home computer later. Then my library geekiness will be complete!

Thing #18 - Web 2.0 tools

Two posts in one day?! Crazy.

For this exercise, we are supposed to pick a Web 2.0 tool from this list and discuss what we learned from it. The hardest part for me was finding a site I either didn't already have an account with, or finding something that didn't overlap with a service I already use!

For fun, I tried HairMixer. I uploaded a picture of myself and tried out different hairstyles. I have to be honest, they were all pretty awful. But I guess that's not the site's fault!

For something more serious (and that might have a library application), I tried out RevolutionHealth. I was surprised at how GREAT the site is! It has a clean, easy to navigate layout, and some awesome features like a symptom checker, BMI calculator, and the ability to create your own personal health record. The information on the site is from trusted sources (MayoClinic, Cleveland Clinic, Familydoctor.org) so I would definitely recommend this site to interested customers.

Thing #17 - Google Docs

Roses are red,
Violets are blue.
I love Google Docs,
And so should you!

Aren't I just the poet? I published that straight from Google Docs, which I (surprisingly) had never done before. It was just as easy as I expected it to be!

Now for some history. You see, Google Docs and I have been friends for a while now. In fact, before it became known as Google Docs, the word processing part of it was known as Writely. I actually became a beta tester for Writely back in 2005, and used it in library school to collaborate more easily on group projects. I still have some of those projects saved, too! I was super excited when Google bought Writely, and I love that they keep expanding it and making it better.

Yes, Google does own my life. And I think that's okay.

Autumn excitement

I have been MIA for awhile - not really sure why, but I've felt very uninspired to write anything lately. But I thought I'd break the silence and list some things I'm excited about right now:

1. Going to the Circleville Pumpkin Show tonight. I've never been to it, even though I've lived in Columbus for 3ish years now.

2. Halloween! Jared and I are having our party again this year, and I'm hoping it will be even better than previous years. Please come if you are free the night of November 1st, and don't forget to dress up!

3. Making costumes for the aforementioned Halloween Party. I ventured into the realm of costume making last year with this Princess Peach costume for Erica M., and I'm hoping that the costumes I'm making this year turn out just as good or even better! (Also, I hope I have time to finish them before the party!)

4. Being crafty. I haven't just been in a blogging rut lately, I've also been in a crafting rut! But I found some fabulous fabric at Joann's the other day, and I'm hoping to make something fun with it. I probably won't get to it until after Halloween, but I'm still excited that I'm actually inspired to make something. It's been a while.

5. Cooking! Yes, I've actually been cooking more lately, and I'm enjoying it. I always love to bake, but cooking has never been my strong point. It still isn't, but I think I'm improving. Practice makes perfect, right?

What are you excited about right now?

Thing #14 - Library 2.0

So I'm finally getting around to posting about Library 2.0. I've been putting it off for a while now - I wasn't sure what I really wanted to add to the conversation. But I've been thinking about it more lately, so here are my thoughts on the subject.

The idea of Library 2.0 has been around for quite a while now. In fact, the articles we read for this "thing" were all from 2006 - that should tell you something right there. Of course, a lot of people think we've been 2.0 all along, and that's somewhat true. But the thing that sticks out for me is the customizable part of Library 2.0, and that's where I think our challenge lies.

Now, when I say customizable, I'm not talking purely about using technology. Sure, web 2.0 tools will make it easier to customize the user experience. For instance, our users could have their own customized library web page - when they log in, all of the resources they like best would be on the front page. Maybe it could also save their reserve settings, knowing automatically which location they prefer to have items sent to. Those would be really cool, customizable things. But our non-web services should be that way, too. If someone wants to just come in, pick up their reserve, check it out themselves, and go - they can do that. But what if someone wants to come in and talk to a staff person about what they are reading that week? What if they would really prefer having a live person check their items out for them? Personally, I don't see anything wrong with that. I think we should make sure that we are still giving our customers options on what kind of experience they can have when they are in our buildings, even if the option they want is the "old fashioned" way. That doesn't mean reverting back to a card catalog - it just means making sure our customers feel like they are being taken care of when they are here. Does that make sense? For the record, I think we do a pretty good job of this already. I just don't want those that aren't ready for web 2.0 to lose out on all the wonderful things that Library 2.0 can provide.

There are plenty of other examples of ways to customize the "library experience" that I can't think of right now. Thoughts?

Things #15 & 16 - Wikis!

As you may or may not have noticed, I've skipped Thing #14. I feel like I have a lot to say about Library 2.0, but for some reason a post is just not coming to me right now. All I can think about are wikis - so that's what I'm going to talk about now. I'll get back to Library 2.0 stuff later.

I really enjoyed the wiki common craft video, and looked at some of the library wikis that are already out there. Overall, I liked what I saw, but I have to say that I'm a firm believer that wikis are not the way to go for everyone. For some reason, when people learn about them, they are like OMG BEST THING EVER and decide that they *have* to start one. In general, I think you should use what works for you - know about the rest, but don't feel like you have to use a certain tool just because it is there.

That being said, I think iwannaprize has a great idea for using wikis as subject resource pages for the public. I also think we could utilize a wiki internally to help us keep better track of resources to use for different kinds of questions, and it would be easy and quick to access when we need it. I'm remembering a question I got not long ago about bonds - we don't get these questions very often, and they are very difficult to answer. If we had a wiki set up, I could add a page about bonds and list the resources I used to find the answer. And other librarians could update it with other resources I didn't know about and/or couldn't find!

I played in the Learn & Play wiki sandbox, and had fun adding my favorite restaurants and movie. However, I found myself wanting to fix everyone's mistakes. I really must learn to control my anal-retentive perfectionist side. :)

Thing #13 - Del.icio.us

As with many of the "things" we've been doing, I've already had a del.icio.us account for a while now. And yeah, I know that I don't need to put the dots in it anymore... but I like it better that way. :)

I don't put all of my bookmarks in delicious though - I just put stuff on there that I think is cool, or funny, or worth sharing with other people. For example, I wouldn't put big sites like Flickr or Gmail on delicious. But maybe I would share a really awesome picture on Flickr or a certain YouTube video that I liked. It's stuff that I might go back sometime and look at again, but not stuff that I go to everyday. I try to make sure that the things I bookmark on delicious are different than the things I share on Google Reader. (An example: Recently, a blog post I read on Google Reader pointed me toward a fun quiz on another site. Instead of sharing the blog post, I bookmarked the quiz in delicious. Had the blog post itself been particularly noteworthy, I would have just shared it in Google Reader. Does that make sense?)

If you're interested, here's my delicious page. Enjoy!

*edit* I forgot to mention how I think delicious can be used in the library! Doh! Actually, what I wanted to say is how great it is that my division is using delicious! See our page here. I would love to see us add to this page and include other websites that we use frequently with our customers.

Just for fun

Disclaimer: I have no desire to start up any political conversations here - but this was too funny not to post, especially after playing around with image and word generators last week.

We all know by now that Sarah Palin has named her kids some very unique names. Well, now you can find out what she would have named you! My name would have been Krinkle Bearcat Palin. I have to say, having the middle name "Bearcat" would be pretty frickin' sweet. If you try it out, let me know what your new name is!

Things #11 & 12 - LibraryThing and Twitter

So I found out after my last post that the stats feature on Flickr has not only been around a while (aka, not new at all), but is only available to people with pro accounts. So... yeah. Sorry about that. But if you have a pro account and haven't seen your stats, you should really get on that.

Anyhow, THIS post is all about LibraryThing and Twitter! I'm combining them into one since I already have accounts with both services. I joined Twitter earlier this year after I finally caught up with the rest of the world and got a texting plan, but I've been on LibraryThing since 2006! In fact, I even got to meet Tim Spalding, creator of LibraryThing, at the 2007 OLC Convention & Expo. Here's my catalog on LibraryThing, and my Twitter page. Feel free to friend me/follow me on either service!

One of the features on LibraryThing that I haven't explored much (but really should!) is LibraryThing Local. What a great opportunity for libraries to advertise our events to the kinds of people that would want to come to them! Also, I just wanted to mention how I love the fact that the largest group on the site is "Librarians Who LibraryThing," with just over 5000 members! Although really, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that the kinds of people who want to catalog their own books would also be the kinds of people who become librarians.

Twitter is pretty new to me still but I'm really enjoying it. I like being able to record the random thoughts I have during the day, and read all about what my friends and colleagues are doing. However, when I try to explain how it works to people that don't know anything about it, I usually get blank stares. Maybe it isn't for everyone. But I can definitely see where libraries could use this to easily post quick updates on their website, or maybe just to connect to our customers and let them know what's going on that day at the library.

Flickr stats

Has everyone tried out the new Flickr homepage yet? I love it. If you haven't, login to Flickr and look at the bottom of the page. You should find a link to try out the new homepage. Click on it, enjoy the music (totally serious), and explore the new page.

One of the best new things I found was an option to turn on statistics about my photos. I'm such a numbers geek, so I had to do this. It told me it might take a while to compile all of the numbers, but I checked back in a few minutes and it was ready. What I found was shocking!

I should give some back story here. When Jared and I were first looking for a place here in Columbus, I took this picture of my foot on the dashboard of my car (I like taking pictures of my feet, apparently). It's really not that exciting of a picture, but somehow it was getting way more views than my other pictures. So about a year ago, I decided to try to take a picture that would surely get more views than any of my other pictures. The result was this picture (safe for work, I promise), which I strategically named "Foot Fetish." Sure enough, it has gathered just over 2,000 views to date, and 7 people call it a favorite. But to my surprise, that is not my highest viewed picture. What picture could possibly get more views than that?

This one, apparently:

Yes, somehow a cart full of Wii gear is way more exciting than a bunch of feet - this picture has gotten over 7,000 views to date! That's a whole hell of a lot more than the foot fetish one. Nobody calls this photo a favorite though, and that doesn't really surprise me. My guess is that the majority of the views came right after this photo was taken, when a lot of people couldn't find a Wii in the stores and were looking around online for photos of one - although the stats don't seem to go back far enough for me to confirm that.

The foot fetish photo is still racking up views, but it will be a long time before it ever surpasses the cart o' Wii goodness. If you want, check out the rest of my stats here.

I'm a star!

Check out this video on Gerald 2.0 - my coworker Jim and I got to talk to Gerald about the fun we've been having with Learn & Play @CML. Surprisingly, we did the whole thing in just one take! I feel kinda famous now. And no, the glasses aren't permanent - they're the ones I wore for my Professor Trelawney costume. I also wore my now infamous green shoes (Jim's request) but we didn't get them in the video. Oh well. If you are reading this from my site and not in a feed reader, you can enjoy the picture of my shoes in the upper left of the page. :)

In other news, I had a fantastic dinner tonight at Tip Top Kitchen with Jennifer. We love our Tuesday night outings! Now it's time for some work, and as of tomorrow I'm off until next Tuesday. What will I do with all my free time, you ask? As little as possible, of course! Haha. Actually, I'm looking forward to catching up on some crafting, movie watching, and a video game I've been neglecting. Should be fun!

Thing #10 - Image Generators!

Oh man, I love these things. Here is one of my arch nemesis, Clippy:


Almost everything else I thought of him saying was completely inappropriate - be glad I spared you, haha. Seriously though... I hate Clippy so very, very much.

Next I decided to do one of something I really, really love - so check out my very own personalized My Little Pony:

Isn't she adorable?! The winged unicorns were always my favorite.

There are lots of really fun image & text generators out there. The other ones I liked were the Motivational Poster and the Alanis Morissette Random Lyric generators. I could probably play around with these all day!

Thing #9 - Finding blogs and feeds

I have to say, I don't really use any blog search websites on a regular basis. Most of the blogs I read I found because another blog that I like linked to them, so I checked them out. I'm trying to think back to when I started reading blogs, and I really can't remember how I found the first ones.

Anyhow - here are my thoughts on the search tools I looked at:

Bloglines Search Tool: If I had a Bloglines account, I might actually use this. But since I don't... well, probably not so much. It works pretty well, although I wish the blog results were right on top instead of the post results.

Topix: Looks like a decent enough news site, and I like the local content. Not sure that I would use this to find feeds though. I would just see what the top stories are, and move on.

Syndic8.com: "Hi - 1998 called, and it wants its HTML code back." Fine if you're into the stripped down IRC look - although this is probably the easiest for newbies to use.

Technorati: Other than the occasional crazy flashing ads, this is a pretty good website. It's the only one where I really get a feel for what is "happening" in the blogosphere (I kinda hate that term though).

Although this wasn't in the list, I noticed that Google Reader has a "discover" feature where it recommends feeds based on the ones you are already subscribed to. Not surprisingly, mine was filled with more library blogs... go figure! This probably wouldn't be very helpful if you are just starting out, but if you are already subscribed to a few blogs you like, this would be a great way to discover more.