Dewey who?

Check out the Two Ronnies take on shelving!

Taking in a show

Photo of children watching show in playground from the Library of Virginia's photostream.

Have just finished a leisurely Sunday drive through the Internet’s online video valley. I had already journeyed to YouTube and Google Video. So I was aware of some of its offerings from pranks to parodies. I used to think it was a kinda online Funniest Home Videos show with talking cats and cringe-worthy “accidents” but soon came to realise it was so much more.

• I drove by some other video hosting websites but soon returned to YouTube because it is so easy to use. Used the suggested searches to have some fun discovering and comparing the range of videos available on the topics.

Photo of view in Mount Vernon Canyon, Colorado from the Library of Congress' photostream.

• This tour highlighted the many features of online video’s vast panorama. The range of sources was evident including television shows, film clips, interviews and news items. Examples ranged from slick high-tech content to charming low-tech efforts. The visit emphasized the array of contributors sharing their wares. I found many of the amateur angles just as effective and interesting as the polished professional inputs.

Photo of movie being filmed from State Library & Archives of Florida's photostream. Note the monkey!

• I then ventured into the five suggested videos which demonstrated the possibilities of libraries using online videos. These videos showed the benefits of using them for both the public and staff. Some appealing opportunities included the guide to using the library collection. Certainly think that videos of this sort showing library collections and layouts would be advantageous.

• The potential of online videos as a marketing and promotional tool for libraries was another avenue I saw on this trip. The idea of highlighting projects, services, author talks, exhibitions etc. would be a positive approach to reaching out and engaging clients (& potential clients) in an online environment. In other searches I found libraries using clever videos to grab attention and perhaps change perceptions of libraries. Competitions for the public to create videos about libraries featured often.

• Online videos could play a big part for staff as well. Training videos could be included as a visual adjunct to paper procedures. Highlights of workshops seem an effective method of reaching out to other staff who couldn’t attend. Particularly in large library services it could be an educational tool for staff to become aware of other library branches in their service. They could also be a fun means of collaborating and connecting with other staff on lighter topics.

Had lots of enlightening and enjoyable experiences on this outing. Came across the American Library Association's five of their favourite library-related YouTube videos. Hard to pick a favourite - probably the Little Britain one.

Taking a trip to Googletown

Photo of Alesund, Norway from Library of Congress' photostream.

I revelled in this latest excursion through Google. Have ventured on some of its streets before, but noticed some other attractions on its roundabouts. There was much to see & learn and I took pleasure in the deviations off my regular path. Highlights included:

Google Translate return trip

• Have spent a lot of time at this site in the past – for multicultural clients mainly, for example there’s a backpackers’ hostel close to the library and I have often suggested they use it to translate websites to assist them in their visit, especially government websites.
• Played a bit by translating a range of salutations & phrases.
• Had tons of fun translating websites. Best of all was seeing our libraries' website in everything from Russian, Korean, Finnish and German.
• Like Google translate for its simple and instantaneous features – making it handy in a library environment for multicultural clients as well as those who need something translated - from old family letters to huge amounts of text or websites.

Google Books lengthy stopover

• This is another destination I had been to before – mainly for demonstrating to clients features like seeing a table of contents. After spending quite a while here today I realize I had barely dipped my toes in and really didn’t want to leave.

• Sometimes the pages were slow loading but were nearly always worth it. Found a few treasures amongst the visual feast, for example seeing an old New York Public Library stamp on a book on the history of ancient Greece.
• I admit I wasn’t fully aware of the scope of “books” included. Was entranced by the amount of magazines included & spent ages swimming through articles on my favourite topics and performers. Outstanding!
• Access and ease of use are great. Skilled search techniques would be a huge benefit to uncovering a range of useful resources. Loved finding old Australian Year Books in the results.
• Definitely will return more frequently to this spot.

iGoogle sightseeing

• I’ve seen iGoogle in action but hadn’t actually ever paid a visit – I love the clutter-free nature of the standard Google page.

• Tripped around a bit and decided to personalise it to my interests.
• So many choices on offer - the theme search was an eye-opener. I had trouble deciding and changed my mind several times.
• Had all sort of gadgets from turtles, fish, tree frogs to eyes cursor.
• In the end I was distracted by a lot of it and ended up streamlining my iGoogle.
• Can see its appeal but it took some getting used to.

Google Calendar driveby

• Didn’t know too much about this location
• Found it had some useful qualities – sharing of calendar with others for organisation purposes, having reminders, ability to invite people to events and get response in one spot and the integration with other email systems.
• It would be a practical way for event planning by a group – having an all in one venue for sharing calendar, details of event, comments & invitations.
• Not entirely convinced without seeing it in action but can see some potential.

Google Maps reading

• Google maps seem so commonplace now. Almost can’t remember life before it and use it often and demo it to people all the time.
• Great add-on features like reviews and comments make it a terrific resource.
• It’s so easy to create and customise a map to include attractions and tours to follow.
• Have seen several library services making good use of Google maps to highlight relevant locations of interest in the vicinity.

"Maybe we should have checked Google Maps first?"

Photo taken of ice cased penguins during first Australasian Antarctic Expedition found on State Library of NSW's photostream.

Just browsing ...

Photo of Young People's Browsing Room from New York Public Library's photostream.

I’ve really enjoyed this sightseeing trip. Was entertained by the video doing the comparison between the four browsers.

Then decided to do some exploring myself and did tours of Google Chrome and Firefox. I’ve downloaded both. Firefox was trouble-free. Encountered some problems with Google Chrome’s installation. Reports on each to follow:

Firefox

• The video tour highlighted the speed and security aspects of the browser. The private browsing, scam identifiers and “forget about this site” features were of note. I was intrigued by the “awesome bar” and the idea that it learns as you use it. The bookmarking tool is certainly easy to use and edit.
• I admit I was taken in by the add-ons mentioned in Fashion Your Firefox. Some sounded promising but weren’t quite what I’d expected. StumbleUpon and the Shutterbug options got my attention immediately. Of course, News Junkie is a prerequisite for me, particularly its Read It Later. Lost plenty of time playing in the Decorator area. Appreciated the Digital Pack Rat especially the Thumbstrips.

Google Chrome

Features that I prized:

• Like the Google search page, Google Chrome’s interface is clutter- free. The arrangement of the toolbar and address bar allow for so much room to view a web page itself and not the browser.
• Chrome’s double duty all in one address bar & search box was an adjustment that I admit took a little getting used to. I suppose I don’t mind the set up of the separate ones as per Firefox.
• Liked the options to “Pick a theme” by artists or google. What to choose - Wes Craven, Mulberry, Anna Sui or Hedgehog in the fog?
• Adored the huge list of shortcut keys although I don’t think my memory is quite up to the job to retain even half of them.
  

Photo from State Library of Queensland's photostream

Which is best? At this stage I’m just happy to find the content I’m after, however the browser looks and operates. I have a leaning towards Firefox for all its customization options, but then again I am in love with the layout of Chrome - there are still so many other browsers I haven't tried yet. Haven’t quite made up my mind. So many goodies to choose from the window. Still browsing, thanks for asking though.

Casting a wide net

Photo from State Library and Archives of Florida's photostream.

On this latest fishing expedition I have stopped off at a few hot spots to see where the fish are biting. I have even jumped into several "streams" in the hope of catching some interesting cod casts, sorry I mean podcasts.

I am by no means a podcast aficionado but am very familiar with the attributes that make it so enticing. The beauty of being able to access what you want anywhere, anytime and listen to it whenever, wherever you please is a revelation. Convenience and the attraction of being able take podcasts with you has many hooked fish in the Internet Ocean. It means that there is now no excuse for letting the big one get away - there's always a podcast archive.

Photo from Oregon State University Archives' photostream

Photo from State Library of NSW photostream

My favourite fishing (podcasting) spots include ones that :

• enlighten me: I love to catch topical and not so typical podcasts on news & current affairs. I prefer to visit podcasts with a slightly different angle or more in depth approach. Enjoy most of ABC's podcasts. A particular favourite is ForaRadio. Also like throwing a line in to catch some of ABC's sport podcasts.
• educate me: Whether it's learning a language or a song, podcasts can be a rewarding expedition on the education freeway. I've found podcasts to take me to lectures and festivals. I didn't have to worry about finding a good seat or deal with noisy distractions. I could pause at any time. I spied a lot of libraries on this journey making use of podcasts for sharing author talks, book reviews and exhibitions. Also caught sight of some using it for training and tours.
• entertain me: Podcasts can brighten and lighten the day allowing me to catch up on those shows that I've missed out and to listen to them at my own leisure. So, if someone tells me again about the crazy thing on the Hamish and Andy show I can go to their podcasts to hear it myself. Music & podcasting go hand in hand and give you a front row ticket. I am a fan of NPR Music with its music interviews and performances. For instance, I could listen to a two-hour Tom Waits concert that I could never get to. Again ABC offers so much, for example, Triple J's Richard Kingsmill's podcast.
  
  On this trip there were a variety of professional broadcast podcasts and unique amateur (& bizarre) offerings that were worth paying a visit. For example, askaninja with its comic take on a ninja handbook. By the way, on a little side trip I snagged plenty of fishing podcasts - threw most of them back though - bit dry for my taste. Anyway, there are plenty of other podcasts in the sea. This is a stream I think that will never be fished out.

IN THE MIX?

Photo of tram & taxi crash in Pitt St. from State Library of New South Wales photostream.

#2 Mashup mousetrap mishap?

I feel as though I've been trapped too long looking at the huge range of websites using mashups. It was an enlightening exit to take , but I felt I had better escape and get back to blog business. Some of my discoveries include:

• Twitter seems to dominate this path. Mashups to help Twitter users (twitters? twitterers? tweeters? twits??) with their tweets abound. Everything from how to convert tweets to SMS shorthand or to translate them to another language. Twitterfall highlights the latest tweet trends & allows searches on what those in your suburb are tweeting about.
  
  
• Photos also get a lot of attention on the mashup motorway. I saw a lot of creative sites making use of them. I particularly liked gimme shiny where the mashing up of the photography & art communities (using Flickr & deviantART along with the bookmarking of FFFFound ) made for fascinating viewing. Pixelpipe showed another way for photos & videos to be shared on social networking and photo websites.
  
  
• Maps certainly direct the action on a lot of sites. I saw many inventive examples of Google Maps use - from checking on real estate in the area to the nearest coffee shops. There were sites combining it with recommendations and reminiscences of town hot spots. Another interesting combination was spot story where maps, photos and experiences of favourite "spots" are shared. (Perhaps this is an avenue for libraries to encourage client participation with their favourite books or spots where they like to read or spots in the library or other local spots that they like.)
  
  
  
• Books do have some mashed up locations. Amazon.com appears to feature heavily in these collaborations. Reading radar is a simple combination of it with the New York Times bestseller list. zoomii books is another example where a mashup is used to bring the experience of browsing bookstore shelves to life while shopping online.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

It's all about working together!

Photo from The Library of Congress photostream

#1 Applying myself 2 test drive part b

Spent a bit of time today exploring the applications & tools available online. Sites worth noting on my trip included:

• Google docs & Zoho - not only great spots to store and get at your documents anywhere anytime but also a simple way of sharing and collaborating on documents. (Great for procedures manuals)
  
  
• SlideShare - a visual vista for sharing a range of material with colleagues or clients. I see it as a great training tool for example. Really enjoyed this and lingered here for while taking in a lot of sites (sic) including - Pivot points for change; Libraries and collaboration with local government; & Library card sign up month.



• Also pulled into Myplick to look at the plicks & plickers on show. Another fantastic venue for presentations and to engage - Social networking & its impact on libraries caught my eye.
  


• A quick visit to Zamzar was worth it. What an easy way to convert files without needing to download the software! I went to town converting several files to PDF.
  
  
• Initially I though Dimdim and Yugma were new options on a takeaway menu. But I soon discovered they were sites that made conferring on the web oh so easy. Great places to use for meetings or even brainstorming to get all those discussions down online, especially if your shorthand is iffy. You can host online training sessions or meetings for up to 20 people on your PC and never have to worry about providing morning tea for them.
  

All of these sites appealed to me as great attractions on my tour for a number of reasons. They were all easy to navigate - I never got lost and had little need to call on any help maps. Everything was on hand where I didn't have the extra baggage of installing software. Their free admission was definite plus and certainly opens them up for accessibility in a library environment.