#18. (Week 8) Take a look at some online productivity tools.

I really love the idea of being able to create documents online so that you can always access them and don't have to carry them around on a portable device. Also you don't have to waste money on expensive software. I didn't know that these sites existed but will surely use them in the future. Wish I'd known about Zoho sooner as a few years ago I didn't have office 2007 and it was very frustrating. I joined Google docs and Zoho both were really easy to join as I was able to use my existing Google account. Thanks for introducing me to these extremely handy "online productivity tools."

I used the Zoho writer to write and publish this blog.

I also created this Fax cover sheet from a template using Google Docs here is the link:

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dfc7nrgh_3c2c86zfs

#23 (week 9) Is this really the end? Or just the beginning

Web 2 has been great adventure I already knew a bit about the Internet but rarely explored it beyond the main sites for example: YouTube and Facebook. The best thing about this programme has been this further exploration into cyberspace. I especially liked the online word processing and office tools, delicious.com, and the "photoshop" tools. I was really impressed by Lulu.com the self-publishing website and have already alerted a few friends and work colleagues to it. The whole programme has left me better equipped to deal with my role as a library assistant as I am more aware of what the Internet has to offer and how to use it.

#21 (Week 9) Podcasts

I watched "Podcasting in Plain English" on YouTube. Podcasting could be used by our librarians as a promotional tool for new releases and upcoming events at our libraries. Librarians can also use book review podcasts to help them keep up with all the latest releases to pass on to patrons.



Podiobooks.com is a website where you can download serialised audio books for free. Their FAQ page states that podiobooks is a website where authors can get exposure to their work, users of the website can also donate money to these authors.


I found it a bit difficult to search for some podcasts that interested me, by using the podcast directories recommended by the Web 2 programme, so I decided to google some podcasts. I found the Comics Podcast Network a site that has all sorts of podcasts relating to graphic novels.



I then explored Podcast Alley a bit more and came up with some better results by typing in "book reviews" and "libraries" into their search box. When your search results come up you can then click onto the podcast title and see a synopsis of the show to get a better idea of whether it interests you or not before you download it.

#20 (Week 9) Discover YouTube

I love watching old Country music TV shows from America, so I posted this video from "The Porter Wagoner Show" it features Dolly Parton (she got her showbiz start here)
I already had a YouTube account so I was familiar with this site as I watch videos regularly. It's one of my favourite sites because it's almost impossible to track down these old TV show in shops and even on Amazon (and similar websites) I love the fact that you can favourite videos to watch whenever you want, however they do disappear over time as a whole lot of my favourite videos were removed because of copyright issues. It would be great to be able to save them onto a DVD or onto your computer, Youtube doesn't allow you to download them onto your computer. A friend of mine has done this successfully, I tried doing it the other day but I you need to download an FLV player from certain websites in order to do it.

It was great to see the winning Auckland City reference interview video and this was used in our customer service training programme last year along with some other videos made by staff. Youtube is a great to train and entertain staff!

#19. (Week 8) Explore any site from the Web 2.0 awards list, play with it and write a blog post about your findings.

I had an interesting time exploring the website Lulu.com. I was amazed that you could publish your own poetry, cooking, comic, and even e-books using this website. So you no longer have to approach publishers or buy expensive software, of course there is a charge for producing your books. You can get complete support from the staff at Lulu if you need help through the publishing process. It's a fun website to explore and would be great to produce a photo book or similar to surprise your friends and family with. One downside is that can only choose from set templates which is a problem if you wanted your book to look more personalised.

If you wanted to use this website in a library setting you could create a local history book similar to "Point Chevalier Memories" (published by Auckland City Libraries last year.) you can then sell them on Lulu.com or in your library.

#16 & #17 (Week 7) Wikis

I was familiar with Wikipedia already and use it often, so it was interesting to learn about other wikis, our Auckland library website tries to encourage patrons to join it so that they can add their own book reviews and discussions.

A great way to use wikis is by getting a person's opinion on what a book was like to them so that you get real criticism instead of relying on publishers' reviews that are like press releases and are always trying to promote the good things about the book. So use wikis as a guideline but don't treat them as gospel. For example I use Amazon.com to decide weather a TV show or a new CD would be good to purchase based on reviews I look at the publisher and public reviews and then try to pick up on what the majority of reviewers think. Of course you can also listen to half tracks or watch episodes to get an even better idea.

Being able to read and write reviews can really help library patron's decide on what they would like to read next. If you really love a book you can create a real buzz about it if enough people join in on the discussion. However there are some idiots who abuse wikis but you just have to ignore them. Overall I like the idea of wikis and being able to start your own page on any subject you like so you could really use it as a promotional tool for the library.
I explored the ACL PB Wiki and added my blog to favourite blogs.

#14 (Week 6) Explore Technorati and learn how tags work with blog posts.

I joined this website and claimed my blog it was a bit confusing I think the claim went through. I tried to search for ACL learning in blogs and posts but the Web 2 blog doesn't come up. I suppose this site serves as yet another good source for finding specific infomation I found some interesting blogs on photoshop, vintage fashion and entertainment gossip. I don't know if I would use this site that much, I usually just "google" anything I need to find. Some of the links in this exercise do not work and may need updating, as I tried adding a watchlist to my blog but there was a message from Technorati saying they weren't offering this servce anymore. I also tried to seach for "ACL Learning" in Blogs and Posts but I couldn't find the blog. There are some interesting features on Technorati such as the top 100 blogs, the hottest blogsphere items and the tag search, however I don't' think I would use this site that often. Technorati perhaps serves as yet another useful advertising tool.

#12 (Week 5) Roll Your Own Search Engine With Rollyo

I had never used this website before so great to get acquainted with it. It was another website that was easy to join and to sign into. I created some searches and tried them out, however they aren't coming up with anything as it kept coming up with this message: "Sorry, we encountered a temporary error processing your search"
Perhaps there was a temporary fault with the website.

Anyway I think in theory it's a nifty idea to be able to create your own searches and have access to other peoples search engines. It was difficult at first to add the rollyo search bar to my blog but with the Web 2 course instructions I was able to manage it. At least I'm getting the hang of how to add bars etc to my blogs and will be yet another useful tool for library work.

First Blog

Have just joined the libraries web 2 programme, pretty straight forward so far...