I'm going to take the easy way out on this and just answer the questions suggested. :)
1. What were your favorite discoveries or exercises on this learning journey? I liked the generators and Del.icio.us, and the online programs. At this point I think they are what I will use the most. Other things, like YouTube I have been using as a spectator, but may become a poster.
2. How has this program assisted or affected your lifelong learning goals? It was a very graphic illustration of how much I need to learn. Also, a good example (or in some cases a bad example) of why library 2.0 needs to be intuitive instead of instruction based. I found Pod Cast Alley easy to find and use until I reached the stage where I wanted to add the RSS feed to my blog. They failed. (not me, of course)
3. Were there any take-aways or unexpected outcomes from this program that surprised you? Not really. I had more fun with the generators than I would have ever dreamed. Who has time to think these things up??? There were some things that my gut reaction was: whoever thought this up needs to get a life. Then there were others that were Wow!
4. What could we do differently to improve upon this program’s format or concept? Perhaps have a help site - very brief - that sort of fills in blanks like the one I identified in Pod Cast Alley. The idea is to use a skill and a step-by-step instruction site would be good - one with screen shots would be perfect.
5. If we offered another discovery program like this in the future, would you chose to participate? You bet! I would love to do more.
Suggestions for future Play to Learn activities: Give us a week or 2 to catch up. Holidays, workloads and life in general make it difficult to keep up sometimes. It would have been good to have an interim deadline (with a week to catch up) and then the final deadline with another week to catch up. I really loved this though. Hope we do it again.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Week 10: My Favorite
I love YouTube! I've been using it for a couple of years now. I began using it when we were shopping for a horse for my daughter. It is great to look at a video online rather than drive 6 hours just to find out that the horse is not suitable. It is also fun! educational! and altogether nifty! Two of my favorites are:
This is one of the most inspiring dressage performances I've ever seen.
This second one is inspiring in that people are doing something good - it sort of restores the faith.
On a previous post - Week 5 I think it was - I included links for a couple of my favorite beading skills vids. I LOVE YouTube.
The podcasts were a bit more difficult for me. Not finding them, or listening to them, but figuring out how to add the RSS feed to this blog. I hope this will do it. By the way, it is a Harry Potter podcast. http://feeds.feedburner.com/mugglecast
Well maybe not. I tried. I'll have to get some help tomorrow, but at least I will have "finished" the exercise.
This is one of the most inspiring dressage performances I've ever seen.
This second one is inspiring in that people are doing something good - it sort of restores the faith.
On a previous post - Week 5 I think it was - I included links for a couple of my favorite beading skills vids. I LOVE YouTube.
The podcasts were a bit more difficult for me. Not finding them, or listening to them, but figuring out how to add the RSS feed to this blog. I hope this will do it. By the way, it is a Harry Potter podcast. http://feeds.feedburner.com/mugglecast
Well maybe not. I tried. I'll have to get some help tomorrow, but at least I will have "finished" the exercise.
Week 8
Hmmm... Not so much a wiki person. Interesting. I can see the applications. Comfortable? No. Not right now anyway. I added something to "Sheldon's Sandbox" and it worked fine, (I added a Halloween Hangman game.), but then it disappeared. :( Then I added my blog name to the sidebar - easier. So far that hasn't poofed into the ether.
I admit it. I sometimes use Wikipedia at work. I find it good for pop culture and techno questions. Other than that, I don't trust its quality or consistency. I'm not sure I trust it even then, but at least it will give me an idea of some terms to search under.
I can see how wikis could be very useful in spreading the library word, and I could probably become comfortable updating one, but it will probably never be my favorite tool or activity. Oh well, the web is infinite, so it is OK not to like some parts, right?
I admit it. I sometimes use Wikipedia at work. I find it good for pop culture and techno questions. Other than that, I don't trust its quality or consistency. I'm not sure I trust it even then, but at least it will give me an idea of some terms to search under.
I can see how wikis could be very useful in spreading the library word, and I could probably become comfortable updating one, but it will probably never be my favorite tool or activity. Oh well, the web is infinite, so it is OK not to like some parts, right?
Week 9:
Online programs. Now this could be handy! I have a friend who lives in another country. For years we have talked about writing a book together and this (an online word processing program) just might be the way to accomplish it. What could be easier?
My friend has trouble with attachments and I am still waiting (4+ years) for that picture of her first grandchild, so a program that works like a word processor and allows you to insert pictures might be just the ticket for her. Word processing programs seem to be pretty intuitive, which makes anyone more comfortable. Maybe I'll get that picture before her grandson graduates from college. Maybe we'll write a book. And I'll owe it all to Play to Learn.
Seriously, this could be a book to patrons who run software at home that is different than what we have at the library. Just think, no different versions of Microsoft Word that won't open on library computers. And perhaps eventually they will add more exotic programs - things that work like photoshop or autocad programs. Very, very cool.
My friend has trouble with attachments and I am still waiting (4+ years) for that picture of her first grandchild, so a program that works like a word processor and allows you to insert pictures might be just the ticket for her. Word processing programs seem to be pretty intuitive, which makes anyone more comfortable. Maybe I'll get that picture before her grandson graduates from college. Maybe we'll write a book. And I'll owe it all to Play to Learn.
Seriously, this could be a book to patrons who run software at home that is different than what we have at the library. Just think, no different versions of Microsoft Word that won't open on library computers. And perhaps eventually they will add more exotic programs - things that work like photoshop or autocad programs. Very, very cool.
Week 7: Technology 2.0: Totally Delicious!
Del.icio.us - that really is the site description as well as the name. I love what you can do with this. Creating my account was easy. Now comes the fun of adding tags. One benefit I can see coming from this is that the "favorites" on my computer won't grow so quickly.
Technorati - ho hum. This one just didn't turn me on. I understand why people might want to use it, but doubt if I will be one of them. Let the web crawlers find me, otherwise, I'll give my info to those I want to have it.
Library 2.0 I like this one! - Actually, I want Library 4.0 - and the computer to go with it. The problem with 2.0 is that to use some of the really neat things, you have to have an updated machine, which most of our patrons do not. My machine at home is not quite what it should be for some heavy duty graphics applications. This may become one of the things that separates the "haves" from the "have nots". I see patrons struggling with this divide every day. To have it truly work, I think we will need to see the prices come down dramatically - much as television sets have. Fluency in this sort of media may become one more division between upper and lower class, unless libraries can afford to carry top notch equipment.
Technorati - ho hum. This one just didn't turn me on. I understand why people might want to use it, but doubt if I will be one of them. Let the web crawlers find me, otherwise, I'll give my info to those I want to have it.
Library 2.0 I like this one! - Actually, I want Library 4.0 - and the computer to go with it. The problem with 2.0 is that to use some of the really neat things, you have to have an updated machine, which most of our patrons do not. My machine at home is not quite what it should be for some heavy duty graphics applications. This may become one of the things that separates the "haves" from the "have nots". I see patrons struggling with this divide every day. To have it truly work, I think we will need to see the prices come down dramatically - much as television sets have. Fluency in this sort of media may become one more division between upper and lower class, unless libraries can afford to carry top notch equipment.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Week 6- Social Networking and me
Social networking. I don't know whether to love it or hate it. I love what it CAN do - the creative uses it can be put to. And I hate much of what IS done with it. A virtual meeting on Second Life? I'm your gal. Talking trash on MySpace? I'm outta here. I see kids on MySpace talking to each other with language and content that make shock jock Don Imus sound like a Sunday School teacher. They don't seem to respect themselves or each other and MySpace seems to contribute to it by not placing any controls on what is posted. I don't want Big Brother, but I also don't want what I see there.
Tom is a Libra by the way.
Billiards? bor-ring! No score. The computer was whipping me and I got very bored. Now a rousing game of GO online is another story. Sometimes your opponents will even give you hints. I am really more into puzzle games.
Tom is a Libra by the way.
Billiards? bor-ring! No score. The computer was whipping me and I got very bored. Now a rousing game of GO online is another story. Sometimes your opponents will even give you hints
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