I just finished the Web 2.0 challenge!
Thursday, May 15, 2008
#22 Listen NJ - Success!
I was foolish enough to try this at work but soon gave up. This was a much easier task to accomplish at home where I did not have any trouble with firewalls, etc. I searched around on this site fo
r a while, just to see the titles contained within. While searching the "children's fiction" link, I was surprised to see titles for both young children and YA and then finding some children's books under "teen fiction." I decided to download The Dark Is Rising Sequence, Book 1, Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper, a book I have been wanting to read/listen to for a while (my reading pile will outlive me by far!). I had no trouble downloading the OverDrive Media Console to my PC and now have it on my desktop. I began listening to it - Success!!! There is an option to burn it to a CD and since I do not have an MP3 player - yet :) - I will burn it to my own CD's and listen in the car. Depending on the books choices available, this could join the ranks of my favorite things of the web challenge.
r a while, just to see the titles contained within. While searching the "children's fiction" link, I was surprised to see titles for both young children and YA and then finding some children's books under "teen fiction." I decided to download The Dark Is Rising Sequence, Book 1, Over Sea, Under Stone by Susan Cooper, a book I have been wanting to read/listen to for a while (my reading pile will outlive me by far!). I had no trouble downloading the OverDrive Media Console to my PC and now have it on my desktop. I began listening to it - Success!!! There is an option to burn it to a CD and since I do not have an MP3 player - yet :) - I will burn it to my own CD's and listen in the car. Depending on the books choices available, this could join the ranks of my favorite things of the web challenge.#23 Wrapping Up
Hmmm...the best thing I liked about this challenge was getting re-acquainted with Web 2.0 and exploring some sites I was not familiar with. Discovering new online places is always fun. During #'s 18 and 19 I discovered Zoho and SEOmoz. Being able to inspect them and keep what I like and pass over the rest expands what I can use and share with others online (I just recommended Zoho to someone this morning). I am also enjoying exploring Listen NJ but so far have not found a book to just download (I am at work so can't burn to a CD) so I have not posted on that yet!
What I liked least is the sheer magnitude of it all. There is so much it is easy to overload after a bit, or conversely, become so immersed you forget what you were exploring in the first place.
I know I mentioned before on one of my posts that we should make use of wikis (and our department is beginning to do just that thanks to Kristen Kirk for getting the ball rolling). But we could also make use of vodcasting forums or special staff programs that we cannot attend, especially if they are given by outside speakers and it is a one-time only deal. Another use could be for training. Instead of having to take staff time to explain certain procedures, a vodcast/screencast could do the same (i.e. for forms, Horizon procedures). It would take a bit of time and effort to set in place but could be useful in the future. I hate to bother colleagues to walk me through a procedure that I may not have used in a while and have forgotten. But if I could "click" to the podcast - great!
What have I shared? GoogleDocs, Zoho, blogging, wikis, Color Blender, Pandora, RSS feeds, bloglines come to mind. Since most of my colleagues are now familiar with these aspects of Web 2.0, I find that I spend more time just trying to explain to the lay person, one who is not at all computer savvy, just what 2.o can do. Which is very difficult if someone is intimidated by computers. But hey, I got my mom blogging and that is an accomplishment!
What I liked least is the sheer magnitude of it all. There is so much it is easy to overload after a bit, or conversely, become so immersed you forget what you were exploring in the first place.
I know I mentioned before on one of my posts that we should make use of wikis (and our department is beginning to do just that thanks to Kristen Kirk for getting the ball rolling). But we could also make use of vodcasting forums or special staff programs that we cannot attend, especially if they are given by outside speakers and it is a one-time only deal. Another use could be for training. Instead of having to take staff time to explain certain procedures, a vodcast/screencast could do the same (i.e. for forms, Horizon procedures). It would take a bit of time and effort to set in place but could be useful in the future. I hate to bother colleagues to walk me through a procedure that I may not have used in a while and have forgotten. But if I could "click" to the podcast - great!
What have I shared? GoogleDocs, Zoho, blogging, wikis, Color Blender, Pandora, RSS feeds, bloglines come to mind. Since most of my colleagues are now familiar with these aspects of Web 2.0, I find that I spend more time just trying to explain to the lay person, one who is not at all computer savvy, just what 2.o can do. Which is very difficult if someone is intimidated by computers. But hey, I got my mom blogging and that is an accomplishment!
#21 Podcast
I find podcasts a fine idea but I generally do not have the patience to listen to one unless I know IN ADVANCE that it is worth my time. Okay, first I started on Podcast.com with Go Vegan with Bob Linden (GoVeganRadio.com), but it was an hour of this guy rambling on. I am already a vegan and I cannot imagine any vegan listening to what they already know expressed in such a sophomoric way and anyone who is not a vegan would not be convinced or think anything except this guy is so untintelligent it is not worth their time. So I tried another site after an agonizing 5 minutes. Vegan A Go-Go was a sweet site that was a multisensory vodcast....the video "Dreaming of Lentil Soup" played with a lite girl band, Hearts of Palm, as the soup was made, the ingredients were listed on the screen as they were added and the recipe was listed underneath in its entirety. As a longtime cook and vegan cooking teacher, I really appreciated that. This site is done by a gal named Jess and she has other recipes in which she just demonstrates like any other cooking show, but the recipe is always written below the podcast.
I am not sure I would subscribe only because I just don't have the time to watch all these things, but I love that they exist and are available if needed.
I am not sure I would subscribe only because I just don't have the time to watch all these things, but I love that they exist and are available if needed.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
#20 A YouTube of my own
Okay, in the shameless promotion department, here is my YouTube video on How to Clip a Kitty's Nails http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKux6aO5KRY
How to Clip a Kitty's Nails
Here is the link to this on blip.tv (I would click that and not the "click to play" below. Like many other blip.tv links, this one "skips.")
Click To Play
How to Clip a Kitty's Nails
Here is the link to this on blip.tv (I would click that and not the "click to play" below. Like many other blip.tv links, this one "skips.")
Click To Play
#19 Web 2.0 awards et al...
What fun sites!!! I am not sure I will use Colorblender as I don’t do webdesign, etc., but since my previous incarnation before librarianship was and is artist, I can really appreciate this. I feel like I have a whole palette before me, but having the HSV option expands it so much more.
Loved Pandora and signed up immediately. I often use music sites on the Internet but I have never had a personalized one. I need a music seeker that will find me music similar to what I like. So I did a couple of searches, first I found me some Indigo Girls and I see that is now on my list…then Celtic Folk and voila! There it is and my list grows. I think this may be my new favorite site…
My favorite award winners on SEOmoz’s site that I actually use are Bloglines, LibraryThing, PBWiki. One that I have been using but is not listed is TravelBuddy, but I will have to check out the other social traveling sites here. Admittedly, there is a lot here on SEOmoz I would like to explore further so it shall be bookmarked.
I just got a kick out of the name WuFoo under Content Aggregation and Management so I checked it out – NOT something I would use since I am not a business or have a need to collect data or payment from anyone. Perhaps if I find time to go back to my portrait business….
Loved Pandora and signed up immediately. I often use music sites on the Internet but I have never had a personalized one. I need a music seeker that will find me music similar to what I like. So I did a couple of searches, first I found me some Indigo Girls and I see that is now on my list…then Celtic Folk and voila! There it is and my list grows. I think this may be my new favorite site…
My favorite award winners on SEOmoz’s site that I actually use are Bloglines, LibraryThing, PBWiki. One that I have been using but is not listed is TravelBuddy, but I will have to check out the other social traveling sites here. Admittedly, there is a lot here on SEOmoz I would like to explore further so it shall be bookmarked.
I just got a kick out of the name WuFoo under Content Aggregation and Management so I checked it out – NOT something I would use since I am not a business or have a need to collect data or payment from anyone. Perhaps if I find time to go back to my portrait business….
#18 Web Apps
I added my name on to the Google Doc, no problem. Having used Google Docs before, I have to say I was not sold on it, and tend to revert back to good ol' Microsoft Word. It was too limiting for my purposes but admittedly, it has been a few months, so perhaps it has improved. I did explore Zoho and liked your description of it (Google on vitamins) which seems accurate. I don't often have to collaborate on a document so that aspect of it doesn't interest me. However, since I often forget my flash drive as I bounce around from terminal to terminal here at work, I should use this service for myself.
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