Web 2.0 Award Winner

I'm completely out of touch with instant-messaging these days, but boy, if I was still IMing I'd be WAY in touch. With a lot of people. That's because I'd be using meebo. This chat tool allows you to Web talk any day from anywhere. Not on your own computer? Not a problem. You can gab using ANY chat service with which you have an account (AIM [what I used to use], Google Talk, ICQ, Jabber, MSN, Yahoo!). And, no downloads or installs! Now, that's cool. Oh, and add Meebo Me to your blog and you'll be able to talk to visitors! Now, as for using this in a library setting, the site has librarians listed in in its example of users. I'm sure it comes in handy for reference questions, especially since it keeps chat logs that librarians can refer back to while researching for answers or pull information from for similar, future queries.

Zoho, Zoho, It's Off to Work I Go!

I was first introduced to Web-based applications while exploring Flickr earlier on in this learning journey. All of the writing applications caught my eye immediately, but since my interest in them had nothing to do with photos, I didn't blog about them. NOW'S MY CHANCE!

I love the idea of being able to write, write, write, right where you're at and then save it and pick it up later at any computer without any disks, CDs, flash-drives, etc. I have a lot of questions that I'll have to explore, though: can you convert a web-based application file into other programs, such as Word? If so, are there glitches? I'm imagining there will be some, considering I couldn't get Zoho Writer to do some things I know Word can. I believe there is a Microsoft web-based application (yep, I just double-checked: Windows Live Writer), so using that in lieu of Zoho might take care of potential conversion problems.

My previous post is a test document I published from Zoho. Some of the spacing got messed up, so the design I was going for is a bit lost. I know the Writer program isn't meant for designs, but I wanted to see if it would work anyway.

Frank Sinatra in Words

Frank SinatraTOPS

DREAMYdeadtough                talker

SMOOTHE

DAPPER                                                                                                TIMELESS

                                                silly                                  TENDER

DEDICATED

                DARING                             SLICK   TUNES                           TALENTED

PBWiki

I inserted a link to my blog on PBWiki, but when I did it the way we were instructed to in Learning 2.0 and on the Favorite Blogs page, the brackets were still showing in the unedited version. So, I just typed in the link without the brackets and it still showed up as a link on the page. Weird. I think I need to play around a little more to understand PBWiki world.

I Always Wondered What Wiki Meant

Wiki is one of those words that I've always wanted to look up, but never did. Anyway, I'm glad to know it's Hawaiian for quick. I for sure thought it was more computer jargon for IT folks to throw around in their own little world; For example, "I'm having a problem with this AS/400 program. I checked the CPU and that doesn't seem to be the glitch, so it could be the RAM. If it's not that, then it's got to be the wiki." My dad, a systems analyst, starts spitting out stuff with acronyms and he may as well be speaking Chinese. He'd likely translate the above as nonsense. I'm not sure if it makes sense. Except for the last word, which I now know doesn't fit.

Anyway, before the wiki walk-through, I did not know there were other wikis out there besides Wikipedia. I feel kind of stupid for thinking that others would not take advantage of the opportunity to create a Web page for which HTML knowledge is not necessary. I'm not crazy about Wikipedia. You never know who's writing what on the page. For instance, I can post a bunch of nonsense definitions for computer jargon, and people would be in big trouble.

But, I do see the value of using wikis in other arenas where hard-core facts aren't as important. I love the idea of building a community wiki with reviews of local restaurants, attractions, shows, etc. Also, I've often wished that our Library catalog included book reviews, as I'm always clicking over to Amazon for more book information. I think the St. Joseph County Public Library system has the right idea for including more details about books in its online catalog; allowing patrons to write reviews, rather than summaries, doesn't promise the public exact synopses, but does give patrons a general flavor for the book. The Prince William Public Library online catalog provides book summaries (it looks like they come off of the jacket), Library Journal reviews and excerpts, but it would be time-consuming and costly for a library itself to insert such information into its catalog and, likely, costly to obtain a program that provides it. Patron reviews through a wiki seem to be the way to go.

I also think wikis would be a great tool for librarians who want to frequently update reading lists on our Library Web site.

To a Temporary Place in Time

Every place in time is temporary. And yet, the great places in time are never forgotten and always relived. Think Beatles tribute bands. Think Elvis impersonators. Think '50s sock hops. Think family holiday traditions. Think something as recent as the re-emergence of Transformers among children whose parents grew up in the '80s. And yet, people who love oldies music or robots in disguise likely welcome MP3 players and the opportunity to see a movie packed with special effects unavailable in the '80s. I think this is the point of the Five Perspectives of Library 2.0. As stated in the fifth perspective, "a futures perspective asks us to reconnect this dialogue to the grand sweep of time from the treasured past to the adventure of the future—and to put people and meaning at the center of our concerns." It's combining what people love about libraries of the past with the technologies they can't live without today, in a way that produces desktop personalities - whether in person or via the Web - that are timelessly pleasant and inviting. Shall I dare to say, user-friendly?

Library Lovers Unite (With Technorati?)!

I think the thing that surprised me most about Technorati is how so many of the popular blogs had to do with gadgets and gizmos. I wonder if the name of the site correlates with that? I'm sure the word "Technorati" draws a lot of techies.

I was also surprised that "library" is one of the site's top searches. Sure, a lot of people I know love libraries, but I can't imagine that library lovers everywhere sit around plugging the word "library" into Technorati's search box. I'm thinking it has something to do with the Library 2.0 craze. Maybe I'm wrong. I hope so. Library lovers unite!

Actually, even as I typed that cheesy last line that was supposed to end this post, I thought about this time when a friend of mine and I discovered that we both shared a fascination for libraries and books and being in and around them. We were thrilled to know another like-mind. In fact, that's always the way it is when I meet another bookworm. It's like this special, fabulous society. Well, at least I feel that way. Maybe I'm just kind of dorky. BUT, if I'm not (but I am) AND if every library lover wants to connect with other people who dig books, well, it would make perfect sense that "library" is a top search on Technorati. The end.