Week 8, Thing 19: Web 2.0

I really enjoyed looking at the short list of Web 2.0 award winners. There were several sites that I could see myself using or that library customers would find helpful. Some of my favorites included:

Farecast-I really liked how it would indicate if the fare was rising,staying steady or about to decrease. A nice option other than travelocity or expedia.

Lulu-How great it that if you can publish and sell writings and artwork!

Zillow-I looked up my address and my parents adreses and was amazed how much information this site provided. For customers house hunting this would be a good resource.

Week 8, Thing 18: Google Docs

When I first started looking at Google Docs I thought to myself, "This is neat but how could I use this, or why would I want to use this feature"? But then I started talking with another librarian and I began to realize the advantages of online productivity tools. I saw that you could work from any computer on a Word document even if that computer did not have Word installed. I liked how easy it was to create documents in Word, Excel, PDF and then upload the documents to a blog. I created Some Great YA books in Google Docs and then posted the list straight to my blog. Which was much easier than trying to figure out how to list my blog in the Wiki.

Some Great YA Books

Elsewhere

Harry Potter

A Great and Terrible Beauty

A Certain Slant of Light

Wicked Lovely

Week 7, Thing 17: SandBox

Ok, I listed my blog in Favorites and yes, it is still up there:) I also added my comments to the Favorite Food wiki. Overall, I thought it was very easy to edit wikis but I would probably not create one unless it was for teaching or work related.

Week 7, Thing 16: Wikis

I really enjoyed exploring and learning more about wikis. Being familiar with wikipedia, I knew that information on wikis can be edited by different people. My first thought for how a public library could utilize wikis, was a wiki for customer book reviews. I thought Princeton Public Library's Book Lovers Wiki was a great example of such a wiki. I especially liked the review index, which allows easy access to certain types of reviews. Merlin Wiki learning link was helpful in that it showed the different types of wiki resources. I looked at pbwiki, in fact I attended a class in which the instructor used her pbwiki to teach the class instead of a PowerPoint presentation. I also checked out wetpaint and came across Nancy Pearl's wiki Book Lust with Nancy Pearl.

Week 6, Thing 15: Web 2.0

I found the articles To a Temporary Place in Time and Away from "Icebergs" to contain interesting viewpoints on the direction of libraries. I really like idea of the library as an ever evolving community place. I think it extremely important in today's age of Borders and Barnes and Nobles that the public library create a welcoming and comfortable space for the customers. The customers should want to visit the library. Not only that, but the library itself must offer relevant materials and services such as wireless, magazines, books and yes, even a coffee bar. In regards to Rick Anderson's article, I agree that the library must not forget the customers' ability to utilize the technology.