YouTube Exercise

As "Mr. Bean in the Library" came up in my first search, I went no further. I thought I knew all the Mr. Bean eps, but I don't recall this one:



Somehow, I doubt Mr. Bean would stand out that much in our library. The Brits probably expect their libraries to be quieter and more studious. Of course, the library in this video is probably an academic library...

He's such a pill. But I adore him.:)

I'd like to see our library begin sharing videos of adult programs and perhaps down the road: tutorials for equipment/programs in the upcoming Technology Center.

Here is the link to the same video:

http://youtu.be/RyDY0hiMZy8

UPDATE: 16 Feb 2012

Well, shoot--the vid has now been blocked! I'd better go look for another. Let's try this:



The picture quality isn't as good, but at least you can see it!

Module 9: Virtual Bookshelves

I'm sure I've signed up for both of these in the past, but I've not been using them and whatever username/passwords, etc. I signed up under are long forgotten, so I signed up again. LibraryThing is Alison53, and GoodReads is Alison.

On

GoodReads, when rating the books 1-5 stars, I'm rating them by how much I enjoy/enjoyed them, not by how "good" I think they are. Because everyone's taste is different and all books are good/bad in different ways. Also, I assume that when we indicate having read a title, it doesn't *have* to be that particular edition pictured. And as far as dates, well, do I count being read "Rapunzel" by my mother before I could read myself?...or reading the Classics Illustrated Junior version, before I read the original Grimm version?

In other words, this tool is a little tricky, and not entirely representative.

On Library Thing it seems easier to find specific editions of titles.

I think (at this early stage) I prefer GoodReads because I find it easier to navigate and edit. Ultimately, I just wish I had more time to explore these sites and play around with them.

Module #8: Facebook

I wanted to "like" Frankenmuth Wixson Public Library because in my dreams I see myself retiring to this small town which is one of my favorite places in the world and running, or at least working in, their library. I'd be right up the street from Zehnder's and the best fried chicken in the world! I'd also be in close touch with many happy family memories, all the way back to childhood. We always went to this town for our special family dinners and on holidays. Recently I've traveled back with my girls, and they've fallen in love with the place, too!

Alas, their link just takes me to a "Library Technology Guides" page. So I "liked" my home town library system" instead.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rpmayer/4036856428/

Sadly, (for me, not for them) the library system has built and expanded, and the Carnegie building of my childhood (see linked photo) my "first" library, where I learned to love books and reading (I still remember the four books I checked out on my first visit at age 4! and that the overdue fine was 2 cents a day!) is now used as a bank.

As so many libraries now have Facebook pages (we've been discussing it for a long time (since before a lot of libraries were on the bandwagon), but don't yet have an "official" page or procedure for managing it) Having a Facebook page increases our marketing capability and makes us appear more knowledgeable about current trends. One Great Read has had a Facebook (managed by WLAF) for several years, now. We would need to nail down the philosophical aspects of how we would handle updating, moderating, managing an "official" library page.

Concerns might arise that, depending how moderated the posting is, some info posted might be inaccurate or sensitive. Still, with so many libraries using it effectively, I wonder how many actual problems we would have.
I would like to compile some research on how many libraries have genuinely had problems with their Facebook pages, and what those problems are.

Twitter (Module 7)

This is my second Twitter account, started specifically for this exercise (like the 23 Things blog). To be frank, I get annoyed trying to post on Twitter because of the 45-word limit. I'm an expounder-at-great-length (in writing) and it just isn't worth my time to post such short comments. I feel restricted. Also, it's good for "conversations," but in my previous account, I never got one response, from anyone. Being that I've been live-journaling as a fiction author for about 10 years, I'm used to getting much more attention.

That said, just because I don't like it, I believe Twitter can be valuable for getting news out--witness our library blog. Some people like to give little reports on stuff, which is fine.

My new account is: ar_moss. I also posted a recipe for Banoffee Pie and a pic of my daughters, who are my two favorite people in the world! of course.

Picnik

I've spent a number of years trying to become proficient in photo-editing programs like Photoshop 7 and Paintshop Pro. I could never find a book that assisted much in the process, and a couple of years ago Photoshop 7 disappeared during a harddrive-blitz to get rid of a virus. So it's been a couple of years since I've worked much with photos. I'm not a big picture-taker myself (if other people hadn't taken pix of my kids while they were growing up, I probably wouldn't have any) and get most of my images from other sources.









This is the initial image I picked with which to tinker. It's a photo of a statue on a gravestone monument in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Bay City, Michigan (my home town).







Here's the image tinted Sepia







A pencil-sketch version. All these options are contained in the "Effects" menu.







This is a long view of the same monument







This is the same pic, "sharpened".

Flickr: Discovery Exercise

--credit: megamuffin

I decided to look for photos of Dean Winchester.



credit: bsfag

who's brave, smart and really loves his car.



--credit: Amanda541890

Looks good scruffy.



--credit: MissBlaze3838

He's also aware he's God's gift to women, takes absolutely no guff from anyone, and has been to Hell and back--literally.



--credit: Angel of Vengeance

He has a complicated relationship with his brother Sam but at the end of the day, they’d die for each other.



--credit: Cah Keynes

Both of them are the best ghost & demon hunters there are!

The most important thing to Dean (next to Sam) is his car, a ’67 Impala.



It belonged to his dad, John Winchester.



Credit: The School of Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Castiel, an angel, is another of his friends. Well, sometimes they're friends, sometimes enemies.:)



--credit: caitlinlost06

BTW: I'm clearly not not the only person who likes Dean:



--credit: emphyria



--credit: Andrea Robertson



--credit: EimieChan



--credit: mysteriousmage



--credit: burakki62

RSS Feed Folders

Folders always help organize documents: I love 'em! I've often had the experience of the "create folder" option not working in various programs, or not displaying properly, in cases that don't SEEM like "user error," but that perhaps are.

We'll see how it works with the RSS feeds.

RSS Feeds:

I spent a long time in the past wondering just what these were, and why I would want them. Often, with new technology, options just "show up," are suddenly all over the place, but info defining what the options are and what they provide is sometimes not readily visible, accessible or available. That leads to anxiety about being left in the dust as new technology "marches on."

Once you find out what these anagrams stand for, and what service is provided, they aren't so scary after all.

First 23 Things post

This is my inaugural post for the 23 Things activity. I have had various online blogs on different topics for years, but it's always fun to start a new one. In this one, I will be posting the results of my participation in the 23 Things activities. Full steam ahead!!