Last but Not Least

• I have to say that I have thoroughly enjoyed this program. I know that I am not as technology savvy as I would like, and this program has forced me to delve into some things I would not otherwise have done.
• One of the best discoveries I made during this process was that Web 2.0 is not as intimidating as I thought it would be. I am better at digging in and figuring things out than I thought I would be. I am loving my Bloglines and go to it every day to keep up with news, library issues, my own blog, etc. I know that in the future, I won't just sit back and wonder what everyone is talking about. I'll go, set up an account and see what it's all about...whatever IT may be! I never, never thought I would set up a Twitter account...but I did, just today. I saw that TeachingBooks.net posted things on Twitter and I thought that would be just one more way to stay in touch with what's going on with authors and other people that interest me.
• One of my lifelong learning goals is to stay in touch with the students of the 21st Century and with my own children who are rapidly growing up in this technology laden world. This program has shown me some of what is out there and what I will have to keep up with or I will be left behind in the world of technology.
• I was a bit surprised at how some of the technology is really useful in daily life and some is just fluff...at least to me! I don't have much free time, so if I am going to do something I want it to be worth my while.
• I thought the program was very organized, easy to understand and not too overwhelming. However, it was fairly time consuming. By the time you read through everything, watched the videos, set up the accounts and blogged about it all, many, many hours were spent. The hours though, were worth the knowledge gained. I really can't suggest any changes because I didn't have many problems and really enjoyed myself.
• I would definitely participate in another discovery program. The incentives helped, but I would probably do it anyway just knowing that it would make me a better librarian and 21st Century Mom!
• I know this sounds goofy, but I hate that this is ending because I have learned so much. I guess now I will be paying closer attention to the tech courses HEB is offering so I can broaden my horizons!

NetLibrary

I was able to create an account, but when I logged out and tried to go back in it wouldn't work...so who knows! I am excited about downloading some books on my new MP3 Player! I love to listen to books as I don't have a ton of time at home to read. I can see myself listening to a book while I walk my dog, do laundry etc. Many students have some kind of device on which they could download a book...if they knew about it! The best is reading themselves, but many would enjoy listening to something that was too hard for them to read.

I am going to go to the Bedford Public Library and sign up through them so I hopefully won't have problems with the account!

You Tube

I don't get on You Tube very often, because I would spend way too much time sitting around watching videos! I chose this video for pure entertainment. I have a dog and cat that do exactly what is being shown in the video, so I loved it! I was not able to figure out how to post the video and post a comment on the same post, so I am doing this in two steps! I think that using video clips in the library has a wide range of uses from teaching a concept, showing something from history, teaching wikis, etc. The list could go on and on.

You Tube

Web 2.0 Awards

I looked at a few different 2.0 websites, but really enjoyed the "Upcoming" site at
http://upcoming.yahoo.com which is a current events site. I typed in Fort Worth as my local site and pulled up several pages of things going on around Ft. Worth. Many museum exhibits were listed, plays, special events at the zoo, etc. The info also listed how long the event was lasting. There was also a way to add the event to your online calendar, "30 Boxes", "Google Calendar", etc. Cool.

Zoho Writer

This online word processor is pretty cool! Just like using any other word processing. It took just a few minutes to figure out how to post it to my blog. Once I did, I realized the font was to big and I was able to edit the document within my blog...nice!

Zoho Writer Document

"The man who does not

read good books has no

advantage over the man

who can't read them."

~Mark Twain

Wikis

I like the social bookmarking sites and in fact set one up earlier in the year after taking a class at Pat May. I did not use it much, but after I have gotten back into it, I think I will use it more. I often find things at home and end up emailing myself the website so that I will have it at school. This is a great way of staying organized and having access to your links.

My principal has tried to use a Wiki with our CI Leadership team, but it just hasn't taken off yet. We have all had to reply and add something to it, but really it has just been an exercise. The teachers are so busy that they don't want to take the time to check it, they forget how to get to it, etc. I think it can be a good thing, but it will have to be something that is used often if it is going to be effective. I can see using a Wiki with the students to do book reviews, but again you have to be careful about what is being added to the Wiki. At least with some blogs, you can set it up where you have to okay the comment before it is posted.

Rollyo Warning!!!

Debe emailed me today about some very inappropriate movie titles populating my Rollyo Search! She was looking at mine and clicked on the movie link. Up popped this huge list of movies, which included VERY INAPPROPRIATE titles!! Now, when I made the Rollyo, I added Cinemark Theater as a "source", and listed "movies" as one of my tags. I am assuming that because I added the tag "movies", tons of movies are being added to my stuff! I am worried about book tags or almost anything! I deleted the source and the tag, but who know what else will show up. Just be very careful!

Web 2.0

I am understanding Web 2.0 more and more, but still I have a lot to learn! I know that to keep up with the everchanging world, I am going to have to hop on board the Web 2.0 train. I think there will be more opportunities for the secondary schools to use blogging, wikis, flickr, image generators, etc. However, the elementary schools can do some of these things on a much smaller level such as a blog for bluebonnet readers, (Nancy already does this!). I know that our libary lessons are going to need to be more technology based, which will change the way we teach, schedule our classes, etc. I'm a little nervous, not being a "digital native", but am determined to catch up with the rest of the technology world and not be left behind.

I really like del.icio.us. I actually set up an account a few months ago after I took a district wiki class, but after I added a few bookmarks, I kind of forgot about it. I am going to make a conscious effort to use these tools as they are there to save time and make your life easier. I just have to remember to use them!!

Play Time

I had never heard of Library Thing, Rollyo or online image generators, but enjoyed learning about them all. I'm not sure if I will continue to use Library Thing, I just don't have a lot of time at home to keep up with this. I enjoyed playing around with the Comic Strip Generator which is where I made the Calvin and Hobbes picture. I really like using Rollyo, it's neat to have your own search engine. I don't have a lot of sites listed yet, but will add more as I go along.

Visit my Rollyo site @

http://rollyo.com/finchera/fincher_family_favs

My Flickr URL

www.flickr.com/photos/booksrule

Bloglines

Wow, this took quite awhile to finish! I'm just going to comment on each of Kiera's suggestions.

• First...I am proud to say that I was able to add an RSS Feed to my own "BooksRule1" blog so I can keep up with any comments made from my Bloglines Acct.
• I really like the RSS feeds. Bloglines is easy to use, but has actually cost me time because I never really read a lot of news online, etc! However, I feel I will be more in touch. I put in some fun feeds like comics and recipes, some business feeds such as library feeds and then the top stories that are going on around the world.
• I could definitely use this technology to keep up with what's going on in the library world and the world in general. I'm ashamed to say that I am not one to stay on top of what's going on so I think this will help me stay more in touch.
• I'm not exactly sure how an elementary library can use this, unless we can subscribe to sites that give us reviews on new books, etc. I'm sure there are uses here...just can't think of them yet!
• I found that browsing through the "top 1000 feeds" on Bloglines was easiest for me to find the feeds.
• I liked the feeds that gave the top stories for the day. It's great just to browse through and read the ones you want. I loved the Calvin and Hobbes and will enjoy a daily dose of this comic strip!
• Besides going through the most popular feeds on Bloglines, I went to sites that I frequent to see if I could find an RSS Feed.

African Village Library

I loved this picture of a library in an African Village that I found on Flickr. I wish I could send them some books!

African Village Library

Me

Okay. I don't always read all of the instructions first! My first post was obviously not about me professionally or personally!

I am married with two boys, ages 11 and 9, one dog, two cats and two fire belly toads which I was horrified to learn that they (the frogs) can live 10 years or more!!

This will be my 13th year in the library and I count my blessings every day that I entered this profession.

I have a BA in History from UTA and my MLS is from UNT.

I hope to gain much needed knowledge from the HEB 23 challenge!