23 Things by Chris

Odiogo - text to podcasts

2008-07-11T10:52:00.006-05:00

Check out Odiogo for an automatic text to audio recording of your blog entries. It will also add a link to your blog so that people can sign up for an rss feed for your site that will include your podcasts.

There is a brief advertisment for the service at the beginning of each podcast and some more unique local names it may not get pronounced exactly right but talk about an easy way to provide an audio opton for visitors to your site!

Actually they call the recordings "podiocasts" because they are not generated by humans!

My job description on Wordle

2008-06-23T13:48:00.002-05:00

Teaching Old Services New Tricks

2008-05-06T17:47:00.002-05:00

Cheryl and I attended this Minitex webinar this afternoon in the comfort of our desk chairs! It was brief but lots of great ideas for how to use podcasts, videos on youtube, suggestions for library / technology blogs to follow and a new feature on Google calendars that uses RSS type feeds to send out informaiton about new events added to their calendar.

Our first plan/dream is to record a podcast of the library walking tour of Bob Dylan history and then with the assistance of my camera crazy son maybe a youtube video to go along with it.

So many ideas, so little time!

twitter

2008-04-29T12:39:00.003-05:00

I started a hibbinglibrary twitter page. I think I can come up with a library related topic at least once a day.

Check it out at www.twitter.com/hibbinglibrary

Windows Live

2008-04-29T11:12:00.002-05:00

I just signed up for the new windows live. I had to do it from home though from my work computer I was unable to access the registration page, I think it checks something with your windows software registration and my work computer would not be in an individual name.

It looks pretty neat, but I will have to find time to work with it more.

Google Gadget

2008-04-13T20:48:00.003-05:00

Today I made my own Google Gadget with a photo of the Hibbing Library and a link to search our catalog. Once it is published I will add it to my blog for all to see.

It was pretty easy to do. I will have to see how I can promote it on our library website.

Click on "Google Gadget" to go to IGoogle and the Gadget I made. I did try to add it to this blog but it didn't work but it does work on my IGoogle page.

Thing 23 - Final Thoughts

2008-04-11T15:33:00.002-05:00

This has been a great experience and a challenge to complete everything in the time allowed!

I have a lot of plans for incorporating these tools into our city/library website. Including Flickr Badges, Gcast Podcasts, and probably building a facebook and myspace page. I have already begun building our church library a catalog on LibraryThing. And am considering migrating my NCLA PbWiki's over to the Zoho wiki that seemed easier to use. I would also add some type of instant messaging reference option to the library website that would be available during normal working hours. Lots of dreams and plans!!

A three (four?) word description of the program: "Ultimate in Web 2.0!"

There were a few tools that did not work as expected, such as the countdown and the occasional link but there were plenty of comments on those pages noting those problems.

Overall this has been a great excuse to play with some tools that will definitely have value to our library.

Thanks to the organizers who made this program possible!

Thing 22 - What Did I Learn Today

2008-04-05T16:20:00.005-05:00

I resolve, to spend 15 minutes a day reading my library and web 2.0 related blogs.

I resolve, to watch or at least listen to the webinars available through the Arrowhead Library System.

I resolve, to continue pestering Cheryl through her gmail, facebook, and Ning account.

I resolve, to learn something everyday.

Today I learned more about Gcast and how to use it on our City website.

I also joined a new Yahoo group lgwsl - Local Government Web in Second Life. Should be an interesting group!

I Resolve to continue using my MyYahoo.com home page but there are other things I would like to add but I have not been able to so I am going to also look more at IGoogle.

Thing 21 - Beyond MySpace

2008-04-05T16:02:00.006-05:00

I am a member of Ning, MySpace, and Facebook now. I will likely stay active with the Facebook and maybe Ning. The Facebook format was the one I preferred the most.

Having contact with other librarians using these tools is great. There are so many different ideas and possibliities for how the tools can be used it is important to stay in touch.

I also like WebJunction and recieve, their weekly email, subscribe to their blog, and use their site frequently. And a plug for our library would be that a lot of the computer and internet classes that our staff have prepared our posted on WebJunction for anyone to use.

Thing 20 - Social Networks

2008-04-01T18:30:00.002-05:00

I joined the library and web 2.0 groups in facebook because they were work related and that would be what I would spend time reading if anything.

Libraries seem to be using MySpace mainly to reach teens. I think more people in our community use MySpace compared to Facebook. Anything that can reach the teen age demographic is good for promoting the library.

I have a real basic personal page on each just to see how they work. Personally, I prefer Facebook, it isn't as "busy" and seemed to have more options that I was interested in. But if I had to choose one to promote the library, I would have to say MySpace.

Thing 19 - Podcasts

2008-04-01T14:37:00.003-05:00

Subscribe Free
Add to my Page

I listened to a couple podcasts from MPR, PBS, and from the Educational Podcast Directory. I thought all three were easy to use.

I will probably listen to more in the future, they are easy to listen to while working at my desk. And those that can be transfered to an MP3 player would be great for long car drives.

I also tried the Gcast podcast recording by phone which was a great easy way to do it without needing any special equipment. A great way to add an audio clip to your website with upcoming events or tips on what is available at the library.

Thing 18 - YouTube

2008-04-01T13:17:00.003-05:00

This is a video my son had made when he was attending MCAD. It is about the surgery he had for pectus excavatum. He is very happy that it has had over 15,000 views and 128 comments posted.

I like how you can search by a topic and then watch more by the same person if you like their work.

It can be a great tool to show off a new or remodeled building. Or just to let people know about the activities you have such as how a normal story time works.

Thing 17 - Elm Productivity

2008-03-28T15:42:00.003-05:00

The webpage option is a nice way to keep all your resources together will all the information needed to properly cite the source and an easy way to get back to the articles for further reference.

Having a shared account would allow multiple staff members to research a project and add their notes and recommendations in one easy location.

They are great for research for school or personal interests. A source for reliable information that is easy to search and use advance search options to narrow your search results.

Thing 16 - Assignment Calculator

2008-03-28T14:32:00.003-05:00

I liked both of these tools for the information available to help students narrow their topics - a task that seems difficult for them. I did like how the Assignmnet Calculator also included sources related to the general topic for further research that students can count on for accuracy instead of just hoping they find the right information in a Google search.

Also having a time line on how long to spend on the different parts can be very helpful to keep students on track to complete an assignment on time.

Thing 15 - Online Games and Libraries

2008-03-28T14:18:00.002-05:00

I played the first round of Puzzle Pirates and it was interesting to see the interaction. I had to wonder if they have people working or some type of software program that coaches the beginners, since it seemed to be able to tell I didn't know what I was doing and told me where to click and move to to get started, continue the game and how to go ashore and spend my winnings! While it was entertaining, besides possible "gaming" competitions I dont know how you would use it as a library.

Second Life I do find very interesting but very time consuming. From what I have read it is very exciting what other libraris are doing there but again it is a team of people working together and they still are not as far as they would like to be. I don't know how or if a small library would want to compete with that. I think it would be better to refer people there if interested and participate if you have the time.

Thing 14 - Library Thing

2008-03-27T12:17:00.002-05:00

I think LibraryThing is great for a small library, like our church library. A very easy way to make an accessible catalog for very little money. I especially liked the forum for librarians interesting and helpful.

I like the widget for the blog but I am a bit confused on why a public library would use it to take people away from their catalog. It is interesting the information LibraryThing has available about books, but there is not a way for a patron to request a copy of the book once they get there or an easy way to get back to the pubic library website to request it.

Thing 13 - Online Productivity Tools

2008-03-26T16:19:00.003-05:00

I have been using the "My Yahoo" as a home page for awhile now. I have my page divided into 3 columns, the first is for library related RSS feeds, the middle column has an entertainment focus, and the 3rd is calendars, weather, and other links. It is my homepage on my home computer. It is relatively easy to use, I can sort the topics I am interested in and access it anywhere.

I liked the backpack concept for keeping lists and a calendar on one site. However, I am not willing to pay the minimum account price of $7 a month for that combination.

Both the online calendars and lists would be great for a librarian that worked in several different buildings of for a library staff to share data. I don't believe I would use the list websites myself though, they seemed more time consuming than helpful.

I do like the 30 boxes calendar, it was easy to use and I have added it at the bottom of the blog. It would however, require a change in thinking about how I use a calendar for it to be useful. I am used to the large desk calendar that I can easily scribble on and cross things off even if it is a couple of days later. And it is always in my face at work so I can't ignore it or forget about it!

Thing 12 - Social Media Sites

2008-03-25T16:48:00.002-05:00

I understand it is important to stay on top of current events to understand what is going on in the world and to be able to patrons questions about those topics. However, I do not think spending a lot of time reviewing these sites would really be that helpful. I could see haveing the sites listed as something to look at when I have absolutely nothing else to do and had time to kill!

I would definately say these tools could easily be a distractor with all the funny and unusual and articles that may be from less than reliable sources.

I have heard of Digg before and seen the icons on websites but this is the first time I have experimented with any of them. I really don't see the value of the tools in a library setting besides the general exposure to news in the world.

Thing 11 - Tagging & Del.icio.us

2008-03-25T15:54:00.003-05:00

I think del.icio.us would be a great tool for teaching or research however, I felt overwhelmed by the volume of links available on the public library sites that were included in the resource section. Having your bookmarks avaiable online would also be a great resource if you traveled between libraries as part of your responsiblities or worked from home.

I have used del.icio.us to set up links about the City of Hibbing at http://del.icio.us/Hibbing sort of a one stop shop for bookmarks on websites related to Hibbing. As a library though I think you would have to be very careful that the links you included were helpful, easy to access, organized and not overwhelming. I think the Menasha Library is a better example with the text descriptions instead of the dewey decimal system the San Mateo library is using as tags.

I also know I had a hard time limiting my tags to one word and I noticed Menasha would put two words together for the tag and it made sense. i.e. popculture

I did look at furl, but I thought the site was a bit slow and was dissapointed that I could search for a tag but could not see what other tags had been attached to a specific article.

Thing 10 - Wikis

2008-03-25T14:49:00.003-05:00

I think wikis are a great way to collaborate on a project and an easy way to make a website. They also would be a better more flexible way to maintain standard operating procedures type document for a library. It would be easy to update and has the option of sending emails out when it has been changed, to keep staff informed.

I think wikipedia is interesting information and a good starting point for information but that information should be verified. One good reason for this is what one of our summer interns told us their knowledge bowl team did. During the part of the competition that allows for research on the internet, the first thing they do is plant false information on wikipedia to try and trick other teams into answering wrong!

I edited the 23 things on a stick wiki. I built a new page about Hibbing and added a list of all the current pages to the sidebar.

I do already maintain a pbwiki for the National Church Library Association listing book reviews. However, that site tends to be rather fickle when I am updating information so I plan to look at the Zoho wiki a little more to see if that one is easier to edit. http://nclareviews.pbwiki.com/

Thing 9 - Online Collaboration Tools

2008-03-24T15:53:00.003-05:00

Welcome to Zoho Writer

Your Word Processor on the Web

This is a test for how well Zoho Writer works. I have used Open Office but this is really convenient to have a web based word processing software available with your documents any where you have internet access. a great way to back up data that does not require a secure environment.

The information above is text from my Zoho writer document. I also created a zoho wiki at:

http://chrismag08.wiki.zoho.com/

These are great tools to use when working as a team on a project. Especially if it is something system wide where all the team members are not located in one building.

The online storage of documents with Google and Zoho would also be great for staff that rotate between buildings or work from home - if the data is not private. I don't know how comfortable I would feel about storing files about staff or patrons online like this.

Thing 8 - slide shows and presentations

2008-03-22T15:43:00.009-05:00

The slide shows would be a fun easy way to make a website look more dynamic. See the left sidebar for my Flickr badge.

The eFolio site was easy to use but I am used to the software as it is the same as our city website. It may not be as intuitive for someone who has never used it before. This seems like a more professional way to promote yourselves in the business world, especialy compared to myspace or facebook.

My eFolio - chrismagnusson.efoliomn1

I was disappointed that the Lazybase was not working but I know another staff member has had problems with the code from that site breaking her blog. That would be a neat tool to have available if it worked properly. I could see making a list of my favorite restaurants to share with people visiting the area or upcoming library classes and events.

The Flickr slideshow and badges were easy to use and I would recommend those but the other two tools were not as user friendly or did not work at all so I don't know that I would recommend them.

Thing 7 - IM, Texting, Webinars

2008-03-22T14:23:00.006-05:00

Instant messaging would be a great tool for internet based reference. However, I do see it being limited by staff being available and willing to do it. Since the only desk staff a staff person is at constantly through out the day is the public service desk, it would definitely have to be something all staff would be willing to use.

Text messaging is a great tool for me personally to communicate with my 20 year old son. He does not like to talk on the phone so it is a great way to stay in touch without annoying each other! I also have just tried the google service. I can see that would be useful searching for phone numbers or restaurants and businesses when on the road. However if you don't have a data plan it could get expensive!

Webinar's are a great learning tool without haveing to travel to the presenters location. Allthough they can be difficult to participate in while at work, since it is easy to get distracted by work responsibiliites. Having a quieter location to participate in a webinar is a very good thing.

Thing 7 - Web 2.0 Communication Tools

2008-03-05T12:56:00.002-06:00

1 - Email is an incredible tool but it can be overwelming. I rely on my spam filters quite a bit to filter out the truly unimportant. It can take time to train the filter to work well since spammers change their addresses so much. But I also find it helpful to filter by subject. That way I can get rid of all the "out of office" sent back to lists I subscribe too. Now if I could just find time to read the interesting but not required for work email!

Thing 6 - Online Image Generators - Image Chef

2008-03-03T11:33:00.002-06:00

This could be a fun way to do a puzzle comntest to see if people could figure out a book title or character from the abbreviation on a license plate.

Thing 6 - Online Image Generators

2008-03-03T11:25:00.003-06:00

This is something that could be used to promote Bob Dylan days or new books if you had permission to use a book cover this way.

This was definately something fast and easy to do!

Thing 5 - Spelling with Flickr

2008-03-03T11:05:00.002-06:00

Spelling with the photos like this would be a fun way to promote your mystery collection or a teen event.

Thing 5 - Making a puzzle from flickr photos

2008-03-03T10:00:00.003-06:00

My creation, originally uploaded by Chris Mag.

A photo by a local Hibbing artist.

This could be a fun way to promote your library with puzzle give aways featuring your library on a puzzle, depending on the costs of the actual puzzles.

Thing 4 - Flickr

2008-02-29T14:33:00.002-06:00

I did have a little bit of frustration with using Flickr. Until I realized I had to load at least 5 photos and wait for them to be reviewed before they would show up in a search . Some of them still don't but I gave up trying to figure out why! Maybe they don't like Bob Dylan!

I think flickr is a great way to make your library more visible on the internet. After all when you are just looking at how things work what do you search on? Often it is you home town or where you live now, or a town you may be moving to. What a great way to learn about the community.

I have not tried any other photo posting website, but I have tried using Aviary's Phoenix program to edit photos on-line for free.

I am not to concerned about photos I post but I take some time and think about how public I want those to be. Unfortunately, there are many youth out there who do not think about that or think that because they are their photos no one else should be looking at them. They just don't realize once a photo is posted online it could be available forever and be altered.

Thing 4 - Flickr blogging

2008-02-27T09:53:00.005-06:00

bob dylan in paper mache, originally uploaded by Chris Mag.

The Hibbing Public Library has a Bob Dylan display that now includes this statue made by a local artist.

Thing 3 - RSS Feeds

2008-02-20T13:17:00.002-06:00

I love the convenience of RSS readers. I already have several subscriptions and scan through my list frequently to see if there is anything new and review the subjects to see if it is something I want to read about. Although I do enjoy and rely on this type of news service, I do worry that people are limiting their world to specific key words and may miss out on a lot of new information that may be underdevelopment.

I use RSS feeds almost daily to keep up on library news, changes in technology and fun stuff – cartoons, odd news, and other things to break up the routine of the day. RSS feeds are a great way to stay up to date on current events in any field of employment not just the library field. Every field has its own specialists and many are very willing to share their experience and expertise.

I have used “My Yahoo” for probably about a year now and am very comfortable with that, but I do think the Google Reader was probably easier to add sources to than My Yahoo is. I still prefer the My Yahoo display style because it shows the subject of the blog entry and how long ago the item was posted with older items automatically rolling off the list. I prefer this view so I can see the subject people are writing about not just the fact that they have written something which saves me even more time deciding what entries I may want to read.

Thing 2 - What is Web 2.0

2008-02-20T12:00:00.003-06:00

Finding time to add a new activity is tough to do. I plan to do some work during slow times at the customer service desk but work requiring more concentration will need to be done at other times and priorities will have to be adjusted to allow for this project.

The Internet is an incredible source of information and fun activities such as shopping and vacation planning. I use it frequently for planning weekend get-aways. I also need to try to keep my husband away from EBay! he has bought everything from volleyball nets, clocks, poop bags (for picking up our dog's you know what), and even our car. Sometimes the convenience of shopping on-line is too convenient!

I do use several Web 2.0 tools to promote the library and the City of Hibbing but only at a very novice level. We are currently using blogs, wikis, Flickr.com, and de.licio.us for the public and I use my Yahoo page to read several RSS feeds. I would like to be able to expand my use of all of these tools.

I have read about the original 23 Things and thought it sounded interesting. I am looking forward to learning about all the new technology available and how it can be adapted to the library. And of course earning a prize is always fun!

Thing 1 - Avitar / Challenges

2008-01-28T14:08:00.000-06:00

I was completly amazed how many options there were for making an avitar with Yahoo! And I didn't even look at the male options. So do I look like I would rather be traveling? I did think it was easier to download the avitar to my computer and then upload it into the blog instead of dealing with the html code.

I did learn about several neat options for adding features to blogs. The poll and list to add links are handy features to increase interactivity.

The more interactive options that are available the more successful a blog can be.

Creating a Blog

2008-01-22T18:15:00.000-06:00

I look forward to participating in the 23 Things on a Stick program to further my knowledge about the various web/library 2.0 tools out there and how they can be used in the public library setting.