Sunday, July 31, 2011

Thing 9: Evernote

Evernote seems to be a combination of other tools I have used.  Like Delicious, it helps organize and save useful information.  Like Zotero, it easily saves different types of files that can be accessed from anywhere and allows the user to add notes.  Like Jing, it allows users to capture only part of a page and mark it up. 

Evernote has useful features.  Evernote's versatility is a bonus.  In addition to capturing entire or partial web pages, it lets users write notes as if using pen and paper (which would be much easier with a PDA and stylus), using a sort of word processing document, or using a webcam. It even recognizes handwriting.   If I had a smart phone, I would appreciate Evernote's mobile features--especially the ability to add images directly.  I need to continue to explore Evernote. My initial reaction to Evernote is positive.  In spite of the fact that the buttons are not labeled and some of them are not intuitive, Evernote is easy to use.  It could easily become one of my favorite tools.  

Thing 8: Google Calendar

I remember a time when I used the calendar in Microsoft Outlook.  I loved the pop-up feature, which would prevent me from missing important appointments.  In one office where I used to work, we relied on Outlook for planning outreach events.  Using the shared office account, we set up events and used color changes to show availability and planned attendance.  After changing positions, I no longer use Outlook on a regular basis. 

In fact, I generally do not rely on a calendar, but when I do, I turn to Google Calendar.  Because my normal schedule is relatively steady, I only use Google Calendar to keep track of one-time or sporadic events.  Because I no longer have email constantly open, I use email reminders rather than pop-ups to plan my weeks.  After adding the widget to my iGoogle page, however, I am not sure I will need them as much.  The widget shows a much cleaner preview of the coming week than the emails, but for now I will keep them as well.  I check Gmail much more often than my iGoogle page and I check it from multiple locations, whereas I usually only check my iGoogle page from home.  

I had not considered how Google Calendar might be useful for libraries.  The links provided were enlightening.  Embedding multiple calendars in one creates an easy way to target events to different users. I also believe that using Google Calendars to show library hours would be useful for libraries with irregular schedules.  Although I cannot currently apply either of these options, I will keep them in mind for the future.

 

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Thing 7: Face-to-face Networks and Professional Organizations

Modified from an image by scad_lo.  Used under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY-2.0) license.

The topics of Thing 7 coordinated nicely with my outside events in my life.

Just as the topic of professional organizations appeared, I received membership renewal notices from two of the professional organizations to which I belong: ALA and PLA, a division of ALA.  As I renewed both memberships, I revised the list of other ALA subgroups to which I belong.  I did not renew membership in groups in which I did not actively participate, even if I found the idea of them admirable.  As I am attempting to transition into another area of librarianship, I added memberships to two subgroups related to the area I wish to join.  I know these two groups are active and lively; I look forward to the coming year!  The other major change this time around is that I no longer qualify for a discounted membership.  Nevertheless, I believe the money was well spent.

Although no face-to-face meet-ups were scheduled nearby, I did do a bit of personal networking.  I asked four new people to be references and all of them readily agreed.  Two of them even wrote letters of reference on short notice.  The takeaway lessons from this experience are that
  1. It never hurts to ask.
  2. Most people are willing to help. 

Thing 6: Online Networks

Image by saintbob.  Used with permission under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY-2.0) license.


This week was all about connecting with others.  Thing 6 focused on online networks, which formally or informally enable  people from all over the world to converse, share ideas, and expand their horizons.  The proliferation of online networks means that opportunities abound, but for now, I stuck with a few of the groups suggested by the 23 Things for Professional Development organizers.

I am already an active member of LinkedIn.  Through LinkedIn I am maintaining a connection to many of my classmates from library school as well as a few others I have met through work or other groups.  Mostly, however, I use it to follow discussions in the groups I am in.  Some of the library groups are extremely active, which constantly exposes me to new ideas and answers questions I may not have even thought to ask.  An opportunity I discovered through one of the email alert services I use spurred me to finally ask a few questions that I have had for a while.  It was the first time I started a discussion, instead of responding to others or passing along a message from someone else.  The replies I received were insightful.  I am grateful to all who responded!

I had not previously heard of LISNPN, perhaps because it is based outside of my own locality.  I have just begun to explore the many resources available on the site.  Through joining the 23 Things group, I have discovered still more of my fellow participants.  Checking through their pages was fun and gave me a few ideas for my own blog.

Most of my friends and family members are dedicated Facebook users, but I always hesitated to join in.  I kept hearing from those around me how easy it was to accidentally spend more time on Facebook than they had intended.  My lack of participation meant that I missed out on some fun announcements, but also that I avoided some bouts of drama.  Through the 23 Things program, I finally joined.  One benefit of starting this late, however, was that finding people to add was fairly simple.  I did not have to go through my contacts one by one to see if they were members, as I did when I first set up my Twitter and LinkedIn accounts.  The quick response from most of the people I sent a friend request was also gratifying.  The set up process confirmed my fears a little bit; setting up an account was time-consuming.  The one other downside was that every time I clicked on a person's account, either by accident or to check if the person was actually the person I knew or just someone with the same name, Facebook rearranged the list of suggested contacts.  The person I had intended to add was now hidden somewhere  else in the list and people I had already decided to skip were back at the beginning.  Although scrolling through the list was time consuming, it was also fascinating to me.  Like tweets, it had the peculiar quality of inspiring a simultaneous sense of being overwhelmed and a dread of having the process end.  Luckily, I made it through the suggestions and have a ready-made list of contacts.  I have even heard from a few of them already!

In the coming weeks, I aim to continue to use these networks but to also maintain the self-control to step away.  Balance is my goal.

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Thing 5: Reflective Practice

Photograph by the italian voice.  Available under Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 2.0) license.


Over the past few weeks, I have learned some things about myself.  Blogging was both part of the attraction of this project and something which made me nervous.  When I began the project, however, my first experiences were contagious!  I interacted with individuals from across the world, learned from my fellow bloggers, and had success with other adventures I began as a result of the project.  I need to participate in more groups like this one: It connects me with others and exposes me to tools I may never have discovered on my own.  I have more or less settled into a routine since those first few days.  Finding the time to post is as much of a struggle as I had feared, but it continues to be rewarding nevertheless.  Every time I sit down to tackle the next task or to explore other participants' blogs, I leave inspired and happy--even with the whittled down group of active participants.  Reading others' responses and thoughts encourages me to post my own.  I continue to add other participants to my RSS feed and to bookmark posts that I find particularly helpful. 

This routine seems to work well for me:


1.  Read the introductory post on the cpd23 page.  Even before I officially registered, I added the blog to my RSS collection and having it there has been invaluable.  I regularly check my Google Reader page, which means that I know right away what I should be focusing on in the week.

2.  Spend the next few days thinking over the week's Thing, considering how I already use (or do not use) it and how it might be useful.

3.  Sit down and really explore the topic, watching videos or reading overviews of it and then experimenting with it on my own.

4.  Read other participants' posts.  Ask myself: Do they share my thoughts on the topic?  What were their experiences with it?  Did someone say something illuminating?

6.  Think about what I might want to write about the topic.

7.  Begin writing.  Usually, the end product contains most of the ideas I had originally planned to include, but in a different format than I had envisioned.


I will continue to use this method over the next few weeks.  Thank you to all the other participants!

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Thing 4: Current Awareness

Information is everywhere and using tools to manage that information is part of what librarianship is all about.  Increasingly, librarianship also embraces the act of helping users create information.  Twitter (http://twitter.com/), RSS, and Pushnote (http://pushnote.com/user/register)--three of the many social networking and content filtering tools available--each uniquely attempt to help users focus on only desired content and allow users to actively create and share information with others.  Each one will appeal to different sets of users for different tasks.

Twitter is an up-to-the-second way to communicate with the world.  Users send brief notes about their thoughts, their actions, information they have found, etc.  These notes can also include links, pictures, and other content that works around the 40-character limit.  Most directly, Twitter users connect with specific people, but tweets are also readable by anyone on Twitter (tweeps or twitterers).  Twitter excels at helping users stay up to date with their contacts and with what is happening in the world--especially if users have cell phones.  The best feature, however, is the search bar.  I appreciate being able to search hash tags (for example #libraries, #ebooks, #sunshine) to get others' perspectives on topics, to find interesting information, or to just find something to smile about.

Another use for Twitter is to help a person scope out the current environment.  One article I read 1 discusses Twitter as the subject of a social sciences study.  Twitter could also be used as part of a STEP analysis (see http://www.managingchange.com/step/overview.htm).  Either way, Twitter is useful for gathering current data.

RSS has both less and more than Twitter.  Following Twitter accounts is like receiving a constant barrage of information tidbits.  If a user does not catch and read a tidbit, it keeps right on flying and is supplanted by new tweets.  RSS, on the other hand, only informs users when the sites they follow have been updated.  For most websites, these updates are less frequent but they often contain more substantial content.  In addition, feeds usually track how many updates the user has yet to read.  Keeping up with an RSS feed takes more time and more effort than following others on Twitter.  In my experience, RSS feeds also tends to help the user focus more tightly on a topic than tweets, which can be a bit unpredictable.  RSS seems to be more of a one-way communication than either Twitter or Pushnote, but users can often respond to posts directly on the website they are following.  RSS is more topic-based, but is less interactive than the other options.

Pushnote, the tool I am least familiar with, lets users comment on websites and see others' comments on them.  It also provides buttons for easily integrating those comments into a Twitter feed or a Facebook post.  The strength of Pushnote is that it is content-driven but also based on interpersonal communication and personal authority.  I could see Pushnote being useful for group collaborations.  Members of a group could suggest pages to use as resources or for ideas and easily share how they think each site would be useful.

I know how I will use each of these tools.  I will use RSS most regularly to keep up with topics of interest to me.  I will turn to Twitter when I want to find current opinions or to explore a topic I have just discovered.  When I want to share information, I will consider using a combination of Pushnote and Twitter.  I will also keep all three tools in mind when helping library users.

How will you use them? 

1. Ovandia, S. (2009). Exploring the potential of Twitter as a research tool. Social and Behavioral Librarian , 28(4), 202-205. 



Saturday, July 2, 2011

Thing 3: Personal Branding

Branding uniquely identifies someone or something in a simple, easy way.  I do not yet have a personal brand.  In fact, I have been avoiding the topic lately.  I know that I should have a personal brand, but I am still working on what it should be.

Some of the hesitation I have about personal branding stems from an indecision about how to incorporate separate ideas.  I believe that a personal brand should, at least to some extent, reflect the person's professional interests.  I am considering careers on almost opposite sides of the spectrum.  There is definite overlap between the two, but on the surface they appear unrelated.  I feel as if I should create a separate brand for each of them--but that requires doubling my online presence and I am not yet sure if I can commit to such a task.

Another problem I have is technological.  If branding should be distinct, I need to substitute my own design for the templates provided by Twitter, Blogger, and other services.  I experimented with creating one, but discovered that the design tools I currently have limit my images by size.  I downloaded GIMP (http://www.gimp.org/), hoping that it would solve that limitation, but my computer turned slow enough that I deleted the program.  I will keep looking for other methods.

I am still figuring out my personal brand.  As a temporary solution, I have changed the background color on my Twitter account to more closely match the template I am using in Blogger.  Aside from the limitations posed by the character restrictions in Twitter, I believe I use similar writing styles as well.  I will more consciously watch my style on each of them.  Personal branding is the challenge of the week!