MLA CE Week 8 - Mashups and API

Mashups are popping up everywhere these days. They are simple to use. Many of them combine real-time data with Google or Yahoo maps to display information such as crime, news, photos, travel, sports, real estate, etc. Some of the popular ones include EveryBlock Chicago (formerly ChicagoCrime.org), Newsmap, Earthquake, Qlock, HousingMaps, etc. I'm interested in creating one like Go-Go Google Gadget to show the new and popular items at our library.

There are a great numbers of posts on privacy in the librarianblogs searchroll of Rollyo. Some deal with patron privacy in libraries. Some describe user attitudes about sharing information on the Internet. It's nice to be able to create custom searchrolls on Rollyo. Here's the link to the searchroll that I created:

http://rollyo.com/tslbrn236/tslbrnlocalnews/

MLA CE Week 7 - Podcasting and Online Hosted Video

It is amazing what you can find on YouTube. It is like watching T.V. on the Internet. You can easily become addicted and spend the whole day doing nothing but watching all sorts of videos on YouTube.

Here’s a video that I find interesting:



I see a lot of potential uses for podcasting in libraries because of its versatility and portability. For example, it can be used to provide instructional programs, news, and audio tours of the library.

MLA CE Week 6 - Online Photo Sharing

P7120247, originally uploaded by tslbrn236.

This is the first photo that I uploaded using flickr.

Flickr is easy to use. I’ll definitely use it to organize and share photos with friends and family. Flickr is also useful for libraries to create photo tours of the library, archive historical collections, highlight new acquisitions, and document library & staff events.

MLA CE Week 5 - Web Office Tools

I enjoy my experience with Google Docs. It is easy to use. I like its online storage and auto-save features. The fact that multiple people can work on a document simultaneously makes sharing and collaborating group projects smooth and simple.

However, web tools require Internet connection. There will be problems with Internet failure. There will be concerns with confidentiality and security. There will be issues with IT blocking access to these products. I don’t think they will be the future of all software products. I believe they complement traditional office tools to make our daily work more efficient and productive.

MLA CE Week 4 - Social Bookmarking

I have fun bookmarking items on del.icio.us. It is interesting to see what other people are bookmarking and what tags they used to describe them. The “network” and “link rolls” features of del.icio.us are useful for sharing favorites with others.

I see the potential of this tool for research assistance. CiteUlike and Connotea are two good examples. They help scientists and researchers find, organize, save, and share links to journal articles and research papers. They are great for online reference management. Best of all, the information is accessible from any computer with Internet connection.

MLA CE Week 3 - Social Networking Tools

Social networking can be used by MLA to share information among its members. It can provide a virtual place to connect/reconnect members with similar interests.

I think our library should have a FB or MS page to post events, new resources, links to the online catalog and other related services. It is easy and convenient to connect with library users and market library services on these social networking sites.

Individuals may have privacy concerns when using social networking sites. Not everyone is comfortable giving out personal information on the Internet. Cautions should be made when using them either personally or professionally.

All in all, I enjoy my FB experience.

MLA CE Week 2 - Wikis

A blog is authored by one person. It allows readers to write comments but only blog author can edit its content.

A wiki is collaboratively authored. It allows open editing. Anyone can contribute to its content.

Blogs are great for online personal journals. Wikis are better suited for group collaboration projects.

MLA CE Week 1 - Blogging and RSS

I learned about blogging and RSS this week. I’ve heard of the terms before but didn’t know it was that easy to create them. Thank you for providing such helpful guidelines, tutorials, and exercises to help us learn these useful technologies.

I think both the librarians and patrons could use RSS as an information delivery tool. The library could use it to promote library resources and services such as new acquisitions, calendar of events, tables of contents, customized searches in PubMed and other databases, etc. Patrons could use it to stay current on loan items, news, available resources and services, etc.

I can’t wait to explore more Web 2.0 technologies…