Thing # 16 - Wikis

A lot of interesting information on wikis. I can see where wikis can in used in the library possibly for book reviews, book clubs, different genres and an author wiki (ie. Stephenie Meyer), just to name a few. I learned that wikis are ways of collecting ideas, sharing knowledge and collaborating; however, since the content of a wiki can be edited and is prone to being subjective, or strongly influenced by opinion it may not be the most reliable source of information. On the other hand, when given as part of an assignment it would be a great way for student to develop and collaborate on a project.

Thing # 15 - Web 2.0, Library 2.o and the Future of Libraries

Each one of these articles was interesting to read and gave me a better understanding of 2.o. I see schools changing to keep up with emerging technology at a rapid pace. I see some who are more advanced and comfortable with technology and others who are not and become overwhelemed. I see some wanting the library as a haven for a quiet place to read and relax, while others like the conversations. Web 2.o is a way to discover and learn new ways to meet the needs of our patrons in order to make learning exciting and something they can relate to. We can help teachers integrate Web 2.0 into their curriculum as well as promote the enjoyment of reading.

Library Thing # 14 - Technorati and How Tags Work

Okay, I played around with Technorati last night. Boy, it sure is filled with a lot of info. I finally had to tell myself to stop!!!... I definitely liked their "popular" feature with favorites of movies, videos, books, etc. Rather interesting what people are interested in. I don't think that I would use Technorati on a regular basis as I would some of the others Things on this online course that I have learned, but I know I would probably use it every so often. I typed in the search "School Library Learning 2.0" and for the post I came up with 261, for the tag search I came up with 28 and for the directory search I came up with 60. I did include the "Popular News" widget on my blog. I know there is a blog capability on Blackboard, but since it has been changed and I'm not sure about "rights" etc. I would love to add some of these widgets to that blog.

As for the tags, I think they are wonderful. They help with using less time for searching and help organize ones searches. Sometimes I can be quite anal, so I like the organization benefit.

Thing # 13 - Tagging and Discovering Delicious

I have heard of del.ici.ous before, but since I attended TLA in April I have been using Diigo for social bookmarking. I like it I guess because I am used to it and their are several things you can do such as highlight and post sticky notes. I was a little apprehensive about beginning social bookmarking because at first I thought all my bookmarks would be made public. I soon realized that this was not the case. This activity has given me the opportunity to familiarize myself with del.ici.ous. Again, I like the fact that one can select whether they wish to have their bookmarking shared or to keep them personal for your own personal use. I think the tags are really useful especially when bringing up all the sites under that tag. That is really a time saver. I can see where social bookmarking would come in handy for classes to have access to certain websites. Any opinions on Diigo??

Thing #12 Creating Community Through Commenting

Geez! This has to be the hardest one for me yet. After I read the activities that were posted for this Thing, the first thing I did was to post to 5 or more of the Library2Play participants and boy am I glad I did. It helped me to relax and calm my apprehensions for posting. It also made me step out of my comfort zone.

This is a good way to share your thoughts and ideas but this is a challenge for me because I really don't like to post about myself. For these assignments, when I post I have a tendency to post like I am the only one who is going to read them. I did not even think about leaving questions. I have read a lot of post by the other participants and it has been a great experience for me to go through and see all the wonderful ideas and suggestions that others have made.

There are quite a few blogs to follow, but the ones that I have most recently followed are Tammy Worcester (who offers ways and ideas for technology integration) and The Goddess of YA Literature Teri Lesesne.

Thanks for helping me to work on conquering this challenge.

Thing # 11 - Library Thing

I love LibraryThing. Personally, it is a great resource for me in order to keep up with what I have read so I can make recommendations. Also, I like the recommendations it gives based on the books in which I have read and I can also make a list of books I want to read. This will also help me find reviews on books.

I signed up for an account and joined three groups, Read YA List, What Are You Reading Now, and Librarian Who LibraryThing. I even put a widget on my blog; however, I had to put it at the bottom. It did not look good on the side. Each time I finish a book I am adding it to LibraryThing. I can always update my widget. Again, this is a great and useful source. Oh, yea! I added the LibraryThing blog to my RSS feed in Google Reader.

Thing # 10 - Online Image Generator

Now, this was fun! I could just play and play. I have used the website cooltext.com (Cool Text Graphics Generator) before because I have used it many times to post text to the campus library page on Blackboard. For this assignment, I used Comic Creator for the Bart Simpson image and Big Huge Labs (Mosaic Maker) for the "books on chocolate" image. For the library, there many ways one could use these generators from making library passes, to promoting and advertising activities in the library. Science, English, Social Studies, and Fine Arts classes could use these generators as alternative ways as products for assignments. For me so far, I have had the most fun with this assignment.