Pinterest

Pinterest is yet another new social bookmarking site on the web. Its hook is that instead of bookmarking sites into lists of links as on Delicious or Google Bookmarks, you can “pin” images from webpages onto different “boards.” So you can quickly glance at a set of images to find what you're looking for, instead of reading through a list of links. You can decide how many boards you want, and what to name them.

The "social" part is that you can follow other accounts and see what other people are pinning onto their boards. You can follow all of someone's boards, or just a few, and "repin" images that they've posted, and pin them onto your own boards.

My children's library blogger colleagues and I started a Pinterest account to collect our "Flannel Friday" flannelboard ideas. Because it is visual, it is so easy to scan and see which ideas you might want to use yourself.

You don't need a Pinterest account to go look! Here's the Flannel Friday boards. You'll see a page with thumbnail images of each board. Click in the middle of a board you're interested in to see the images in a larger size.

A great thing about Pinterest is that when you "repin" someone else's image, the image maintains its link to the original website or post. So not matter how many times an image has been passed along, you can always go all the way back to the primary source.

Cool Kids Website

This website is too cool not to share http://www.kidsclick.org/ . Some may already be familiar but for those unfamiliar, happy exploring! There are a ton of links to homework sites and content is all selected by children's librarians and created by the Library and Information Science school at Kent State University. My favorite thing about the website is organization.

Check out the Dewey Decimal search option where kids can learn what is under each number category.

*Translate the page to Spanish, Russian, Chinese, etc. by right clicking and selecting Translate Page. Works in Google Chrome and Internet Explorer.

Google Search Tips

Here are some tips on how to make your Google search more precise.

-          Limit your search by the top level domain (TLD). Together with your keywords, put “site: top level domain.” For example, search “diabetes site:edu” will retrieve only sites from educational institutions with the TLD .edu. “Site:gov” will retrieve only government sites; “site:ru” – Russian sites; “site:mx” – Mexican sites. Be careful not to put a space between colon and your TLD.

-          You can use a part of or an entire domain to further limit your search. For example, search “site:arapahoelibraries.org policy” will retrieve everything related to policies on the http://arapahoelibraries.org/ website. Search “site:gob.mx libraries” will retrieve Mexican government sites about libraries.

-          Searches for “file:doc” and “file:ppt” will retrieve only results in Microsoft Word and Power Point Presentations.

-          After you start typing your keywords into Google search box, a link to the Advanced Google search appears on the right to the box. Even though the basic search box is the best way to search Google, you can use the Advanced Search to practice various search methods. After the results of your Advanced Search are displayed, you can see how the search string is formulated in the basic search window.

Create a Home Inventory Now for Insurance Later

Do you have a home inventory? With earthquakes, hurricanes, and other disasters happening, here is a good site for help making a home inventory. http://www.techlicious.com/tip/creating-a-home-inventory-for-insurance/

Love words ??

This is something just for fun.... www.savethewords.org make sure your volume is on!

Observing children and technology

Here at May we have an installation for children called Spin A Story which includes a large set of spinnable cubes on the wall which have different bright pictures, and a screen which can show the user on a video camera in front of the cubes telling a story with them. I keep observing that often what the children want to do is use the screen as a touch screen. There's no mouse, so they touch the screen and want things to happen! They want pictures to zoom around at their finger's command! It reminds me of theories I've read that members of this young generation are not passive observers of technology but expect to participate and make new things happen. And this starts at a very young age now. What a world these children are taking part in!

Finally Freegal

I FINALLY tried Freegal this past week! I'm a little embarrassed about how long it took me to get around to it, especially given how EASY it was to do once I started. There's no separate software (like Overdrive) and set up for your account is nothing more than typing in your name and library card number on the Freegal page.

Then you just search for your song and click to download. That's it! Apparently our patrons are finding it just as easy, since it's a well-used service, and when I spoke to one of the librarians, she said that they almost never get hunt group calls from customers with questions about it.

I did notice that the basic search is pretty loose, so that you will get dozens if not hundreds of hits when you type in a song title or artist. But there is an advanced search which narrows things down much more effectively. Since you can only do three songs a week, I was looking for a wish-list feature where you could keep track of songs that you wanted in the future, but I didn't see one. Does anyone else know about that?

I can't wait to show my 13 year old how to do it herself with her own library card.

The hardest part? Waiting a whole week before I can choose three more songs!

Edmodo

This site was recommended by a teacher friend of mine!
Edmodo.com is like Facebook for educators. It is a social learning network for teachers, students, schools and districts. Edmodo provides free classroom communication on a secure social network. She recently sent me this website www.whatshouldireadnext.com from a posting on Edmodo. Great ideas are all over the place so let your teacher friends know and let the sharing begin!!

SkyDrive

If you have a Hotmail account then you might be familiar with SkyDrive, if not then you really should! SkyDrive is another form of cloud computing like Google Docs. The reason I love SkyDrive is because it is Microsoft and they offer Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Users can upload, create, edit, and share Microsoft Office documents directly within a Web browser. Give this a try

Facebook Question

Calling all Facebook fiends! Lidia and I have a question:

There was a patron who had noticed on her daughter's facebook profile that the profile pictures of her friends on the left side of the screen were not visible; it only showed names. She would like to make her profile the same way. Her profile was the normal view - showing names and profile pictures of her friends, but she didn't want to see the pictures for some privacy issue. Do any of you know how to do this? We tried searching the privacy settings, account settings, and asking google, but we cannot figure this out.

Thanks!

iPad for Class Notes

A couple of weeks ago, I led a staff training class, and after years of using my 3-ring-binder system to manage my notes, I thought I'd try using my iPad instead. I typed up my notes, and saved them as a PDF, then emailed them to myself, and opened them up on my iPad with iBook.

It was easy to flip through my notes on the iPad during class, but what I couldn't do, as class progressed, was write down ideas, questions, and thoughts on the same document. I'm used to scrawling all over my notes and using them later to adjust the course outline and content. I still took notes, but I did so on a separate pad of paper, rather than switch back and forth on the iPad between iBook and a word processor. It felt a little silly to be using both! I will probably go back to my paper notes for the time being, and look for other ways to use the iPad for work.

What is Spotify?

Edit: Hat tip to Sharon Hill for spotting this service on here back in late July.

Spotify is an online music-streaming service that's been waking waves in Europe for a while now. Finally, after overcoming licensing and legal obstacles Spotify is here in the U.S. This may be a good service to recommend to patrons if they've maxed out their Freegal downloads. Find a good introduction and guide to Spotify here.

Facebook For Dummies

For those of us that didn't grow up with technology, deciding to become a Facebook member was a little intimidating.  I wanted a step by step instruction sheet.  I searched and found a few instructional  websites but several of them were on advanced topics and used terms I really didn't understand.. I found some videos on YouTube but they were a little hard to follow and not a lot of useful information. What I wanted was just the basics.  I looked at the help section on Facebook and learned quite a few things but still felt uncomfortable.  After all I am just becoming comfortable with the idea that being someone's bff is a good thing.  I just wanted to know what a wall was and how to post comments and download pictures.  It is hard to admit, but the site I found  the most helpful was :  Facebook for Dummies at:   http:\\www.dumies.com/how-to/content/facebook-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html.  I wish it had a different name.  I hate to think of myself as a dummy but with easy to follow sections like,  Five Things To Check When You Log Into Facebook , and headings like, What Is It and How to Do It, I felt like they  were speaking my language.  I feel like I can now move on to some of the advanced things now.  Why am I sharing this?  It isn't anything new but I just wanted to share what helped me. There are a lot of patrons that are technology challenged like me  and may need step by step instructions in an easy to understand format.  

PDFfiller.com

We have many patrons in our library who try to fill out PDF forms on line, i.e. to type the info into the form and they can't. I have found out that there are several ways to do that. Today I will talk about one only, namely: www.PDFfiller.com You just upload the form you need to fill out from your file or from URL, type into it and print. Typing is neat and always looks better than handwriting. There are many advantages if filling a PDF form on line: this website requires zero installation, you have a secure place to keep your PDF forms and you can access, fill, write, fax, email and print forms from any computer. Try! You'll like it!

Imendi

The website imendi.com is an excellent way to learn another language by improving your vocabulary. The only disadvantage is that it does not support grammar. Lastly, you can choose lessons and it will evaluate your score and the end of each session.

Future of the Book

As book-lovers, many of us have wondered what the future of the printed book might be. Here is a link to an intriguing interview with Bob Stein, founder and co-director of the Institute for the Future of the Book: http://imprint.printmag.com/innovation/the-social-context-of-reading-five-questions-for-bob-stein/

Katango - Circle Wars

There's a brand new app called Katango that will automatically put your Facebook friends into circles. It is intended to help FB compete with Google Plus. Basically, it is an algorithm that examines a user's Facebook friends and sorts them on the basis of geography, location, school, and friends of friends, automatically creating subgroups for sharing information. Sounds like a good idea that still has a few kinks to work out (results are "not completely accurate").

The Associated Press reports, "Facebook already lets users sort friends into separate groups. And Google Plus, the online search leader's most ambitious social-networking venture yet, was built on the idea that people want to share different things with different people online. One of its main features is "circles," which lets users sort friends, family and acquaintances into separate groups and share things only with them."

Read more about it here:
http://www2.tbo.com/business/business/2011/aug/08/spbizo1-katango-launches-web-service-to-organize-f-ar-248858/

Blogging by Email

I have kept a personal Blogger account for five or six years now in order to easily share pictures and updates of my girls' activities with our extended and wide-spread family. I have typically sat down at my computer at home to post several items at a time every week or two. Even after I got my first smartphone several years ago, I didn't think about using it to post to my blog.

But recently a few things came together for me:

I upgraded last year to an iPhone 4 and the camera on the phone is SO MUCH BETTER than my old phone, and

I've had a chance to explore mobile social network sharing through accounts with Tumblr and Instagram, and I now know how easy it is to post from my phone.

So I went into my Blogger account in order to turn on email blogging!

In the Email and Mobile Settings, I created a email address specifically for my blog. Anything mailed to that address will be posted to my blog! (Obviously, they recommend that you keep this email private, because anyone with the address could post.)

Then I added that email to my contacts list on my phone. Now when I'm out and about with the girls, I can take a quick picture of them with my phone, and email the picture to the blog right away. The subject line of the email is the blog post title, and the content of the email is the content of the post. I hit send, and in a few minutes there's a new post on the blog!

This is exciting to me because my personal blogging usually has to wait for a week or two (sometimes three or four) before I can set aside enough time for it. I still blog from my computer at home--when I have longer posts or lots of photos that's still the best way to do the work--but now it's easy and fun to send quick items to the blog a couple of times a week. The grandparents and aunts and uncles get more frequent updates, and I have less "backlog" when I do sit down to blog.

It was a good reminder to me, too, that when you have a program or software or whatever that you use all the time, it's worth it to go back every once in awhile and look at all the features with fresh eyes. Something that you didn't have use of when you first started using the program might be just thing thing for you now!

NPR's new App

I was listening to NPR radio this weekend and they were announcing their new NPR App for phones and I pads etc. Its a free App download. They said after downloading look in the App for Colorado Public radio. If you have trouble there is a help section.

ALA Annual Virtual Conference

I attended two sessions of the ALA Annual Virtual Conference.

Session “From Gutenberg to Google and Glogs, From Books to Vooks”

            The session’s participants discussed the following questions:

·        What is the impact of electronic resources on library’s services?

·        How do libraries communicate their new roles to patrons?

·        How many print and electronic books libraries have to purchase?

·        Do libraries need to provide access to electronic devices?

·        Should the focus be on devices or content?

            The participants acknowledged that the shift in collection development already had happened. This shift triggered practical questions about electronic books processing and cataloging and electronic devices loss prevention. Librarians need to decide of what parts of a collection should consist of print and what of electronic resources. Librarians have to pay even more attention to educating patrons about what is available and what is not. Since not all electronic resources provide full-text access, patrons need to learn how and where to get reliable information. Patron-driven acquisition model was discussed. This model could be applicable not only to academic libraries, but to public and school libraries as well. Libraries should move towards a “platform agnostic” approach; this way patrons’ needs would drive the decisions libraries have to make in all areas of work.

            The session was helpful in outlining the challenges libraries face in a new environment.   

Session “Perceptions of New Professionals”

            The session participants discussed the following aspects of being a new professional:

·        Importance of volunteering for professional organizations

·        Importance of acquiring new skills in addition to the skill set an MLIS degree supplies

·        Importance of remaining optimistic even in the tough job market

·        Importance of considering the question of what one can bring to the table that is unique

·        Importance of being flexible in definition of success

·        Importance of being open to relocation and non-traditional job setting

            The session was useful in bringing together perspectives of distinguished and new professionals; the advice to aspiring librarians was solid and comprehensive.

Google +

Google +, some say, will replace Facebook, or at least, be a big competitor. While Google + is in its field trial period and participation is invitation-only, they do share some of their features at
www.google.com/intl/en-US/+/demo

Circles: put friends in one circle, parents/children in another circle, and co-workers/boss in another and share just what you want with each group

Hangouts: unplanned meet-ups can happen when you post where you are to who you want to know so they can meet you

Instant Uploads: photos & videos upload themselves automatically to a private album on Google +

Sparks: tell Sparks what you are into and it will send you stuff it thinks you'll like.

Huddles: instead of six conversations trying to decide on a movie, Huddle turns those conversations into on simple chat group

I am interested in knowing more about Google + as soon as it comes out to the masses

eBooks, eBook file formats, and the Kindle - what gives?

If you look at our digital materials webpage and peruse the eBook devices supported by our eBook affiliates/vendors, you’ll see all kinds of companies and eBook models. Sony’s eReader is there, and so is the Nook. Conspicuously absent is the best selling eBook reader from Amazon: the Kindle. Sales for the Kindle skyrocketed after the release of their 3rd generation model, but the device is somewhat of a loner when it comes to libraries. Why is that?

Kindles and ePub don’t get along so well

There are a lot of file formats for eBooks. In the same way that a .jpeg at the end of the file indicates that the file is an image and a .doc at the end of a file name tells the computer to open the file in Microsoft Word, eBooks come in a wide variety of file formats. For example, eBooks are often made into PDFs for easy reading. Some companies and eBook readers have their own proprietary file formats – Kindle’s format is .AZW. EPUB is an open-source format used by a lot of publishers, universities and writers. The coding, or the guts behind the file format, are available for all to see. Google Books publishes most of their downloadable files in EPUB, and this is one of the file formats OverDrive offers for books.

Unfortunately, Kindle’s don’t “do” EPUB. Kindle’s like to stick to their own proprietary formats, like .AZW, .PRC or .MOBI. This means it’s hard for companies like OverDrive to offer books usable on the Kindle. It also means its easier for Amazon to encourage customers to purchase books from the Amazon store, NOT check them out or download them for free.

There is a solution! Convert EPUB files into Kindle friendly files

There’s actually a surprisingly easy way to convert EPUB files, or any other eBook file, into a format the Kindle can digest. Free software Calibre, designed and programmed by a highly talented programmer, is an excellent eBook collection manager, and used by many eBook owners to manage their eBooks and send eBook files to their readers from their computers. Calibre can convert eBook files into many other types of eBook files. Kindle also provides its own converter, called KindleGen.

Effectively, a user could download an EPUB file and convert it to a file format that the Kindle can read, most commonly a .MOBI file. You can use it for any other file format too. For example, Kindle’s can display PDF files, but you won’t be able to resize the text to make it easier to see. If you instead downloaded the PDF and converted it to a .MOBI file and then sent that to your Kindle, you would then have a version of the text where you COULD change the size of the text.

Changes on the Horizon
Amazon is working with distributors and decision makers to help libraries provide books from their collections to Kindle users. As a Kindle owner I look forward to seeing that happen. In the meantime, you can tell patrons with Kindles that they’re not out of luck – Kindles are excellent eBook readers, and made even better by the efforts of talented developers.