Week 12, the finishing post

That's the lot then. The 23 things has been a really useful initiative to take part in, and I'm grateful to everyone who has organized it, and run the drop-in sessions at the RSL to help us over potential stumbling blocks. There have been parts of it that I've been dubious about, at least from a professional point of view such as twitter, which I still find it hard to see as a library tool.
On the other hand, I was pretty sceptical about the value of facebook as a library tool, yet having looked into it as part of the 23 things, I can see how it is used as part of the public face of libraries. If it is a medium that is used by so many people, then it makes sense to try to adapt to it and use it to communicate with our library users. You can't fight change, and I guess we have to move with the technology to maintain a relevant service.
There have also been parts which are definitely of use in library terms such as LinkedIn, and the google docs, and which I wouldn't have known about if I hadn't been involved in the programme.
There were some things such as flickr which will be of use in a social context rather than a work setting, but again, without taking part in the 23 things I wouldn't have been aware of.

I think that quite a few people including myself have found it difficult at times to fit the weeks tasks into their work schedule, but that's a challenge with any extra task you take on, and I'm lucky to have been given sufficient time and flexibility to get most of the things done in work time.
One issue I have found, is that I think the 23 things does assume a relatively high starting level of competence in using computers and web 2.0, which has at points been a cause for frustration. However, overall I have found this to be a really useful experience and I'm glad I've taken part in it.

week 11, gadgets and widgets

Is this getting easier, or has the gradual exposure to modern technology actually started to sink in? Actually, this task was fairly straight-forward thanks to some very well written instructions, and so I was able to add my flickr photostream with no problem. I was even encouraged to add some news headlines on world cycling to the blog in an effort to make it slightly more interesting. The actual interface on blogger makes it very easy to add and customize the blog, which encourages further exploration.

The same applies to adding the delicious link in igoogle. No problem, and now I can see the value of delicious as a convenient way of getting to personal bookmarks from igoogle. Again, I was encouraged to explore further and have added another couple of gadgets to my page, including a useful link to Copac. This is a useful link to UK libraries catalogues, and gives some professional credibility amongst the 'good food' and quote of the day gadgets that are otherwise occupying space on the page. I am working, honest...

Week 10, Google Docs and Think Free

Having heard a lot about cloud computing, it has been interesting to dabble on the edges of this entity. I found Google Docs to be very straight-forward to use, albeit fairly basic in the tools it offers. As a means of accessing basic documents from anywhere in the world, I think it is a great tool. Mind you, I'm not convinced of quite how secure it might be as with all the cloud computing. As for Think Free, it gives a much wider list of options, and is more like a normal Word document. So far so good, but I did find it to be pretty slow, with delays between typing something and it appearing on the screen So as a serious tool for professional work I'm not sure if it would be ideal. But, if you can live with the slower speed, again, the ability to access it from any where is a pretty useful thing.

Week 9, Wikipedia

I've dipped into Wikipedia a few times over the years, and think that as a starting point for research into a subject it can be very useful. The site itself admits that it can be open to 'vandalism', and anyone who takes a Wikipedia article as the gospel truth is taking a leap of faith. Having said that, just because it can be manipulated by anyone - which is after all its greatest strength - it doesn't follow that it will be inaccurate. The fact that it does have references to external sources helps to bolster the accuracy, or widen the area of related information, which is useful to a researcher. The discussion feature is interesting, but seems to fall a long way short of the to-and-fro content of most subject related blogs, or sites such as facebook, but as a secondary feature of Wikipedia that isn't a major criticism.

Week 9, Wikis

Have had a gander at the Oxford web 2.0 wiki, and updated a reference from OULS to Bodleian Libraries (on the study day page). Not a major contribution then, but as an exercise in very basic editing of a wiki, it shows the adaptability and user-interactivity of wikis. I may even let loose on the C&RD wiki as a result!

week 8 Twitter

I have had a quick trip around the land of tweets, and followed a few peoples twitterings. The enforced brevity of it certainly cuts down on the waffle you can find from sites such as facebook and individual blogs (hypocrite, me?). Definitely more use as a social thing, but having said that, the tweets re the staff conference and the ability to use hashtags to collect tweets on a specific subject show it has some potential as a work tool.

week 7 LinkedIn

Signed up to LinkedIn. Could be useful for getting in touch with colleagues. Certainly more work based than facebook, which is no bad thing.

week 7 Facebook

Aside from my scepticism regarding the value of facebook on social terms (no, I really don't want to know what X is doing at this given moment), I think that facebook is a valid way of getting information about libraries on the web. For the basics such as giving times of opening hours etc the general info tag on facebook tells the reader what they need to know. The option to update the 'wall' is a convenient way of giving rolling updates regarding any changes to service or infrastructure, such as the law library's updates on current changes to some of their PCs. Adding photos allows the library to give readers a clear idea of what to expect the buildings to be like, and the option to list links from the particular library's site to tools such as SOLO would certainly make for a quicker, more pain-free experience for readers.

Youtube

No worries on this 'thing'. I use Youtube for watching music videos/comedy on a regular basis, and it isn't too great a step to see the value of using it for promoting particular libraries and the services they can provide -the Open University has a pretty good site for that. As a familiar tool to most of today's students I think it is a good way for explaining what resources are available, something that quite a lot of the American university libraries seem to have done. Now, back to the two ronnies swear box sketch...

Podcasts

Important note regarding this 'thing' : it involves using headphones in the office, which means your colleagues have carte blanche to mock you mercilessly without the danger of you realising. Nothing new there then. Anyhow, I was feeling a bit sceptical about the professional applications of podcasts - not that that stopped me laughing like a hyena whilst listening to the radio 4 comedy podcasts from the News Quiz. However, having also listened to the podcast of the 'gems of the Bodleian library' I see that there are uses for this technology to promote both the library and its collections. Time to get rid of the earphones and try to catch some of the ridicule doubtless coming in my direction as I write!

Social bookmarking and tagging - Delicious

I suppose that with a bit more experience of using delicious it might get to be useful, and I can see the use of having quick access to bookmarks from other networks for rapidly getting to specific subjects as a professional tool. Still not sure how much I'd use it socially.

Social bookmarking and tagging - Delicious

OK, have completed the first part of delicious, but I can't see much benefit to it , as opposed to just using the favourites button on the normal toolbar. Maybe if I was moving around different computers on a regular basis...

Week 4 - a picnik

Well, I may not be in danger of rivalling David Bailey, but I've managed to get to grips with the basics of picnik and using the special effects on the site have transformed what was a reasonable picture of some seals trying to mind their own business into a night vision shot instead. This after I'd carefully adjusted the colour and contrast of the normal photo.

week 4

OK, have flickr'd into being. Happily the 23 things instructions are very good, and with some help from Jackie I've managed to pop a couple of photos from my exile in the northern lands on the site. I'm just waiting for clearance to join the exclusive 23 group and then the sky's the limit! Well, at least flickr is the limit.

RSS feeds

Easy isn't it? Well, once I'd understood the instructions. I have to admit that they are very nearly idiot proof, but as one who strives to meet any challenge, I did spend an irate few minutes trying to find the RSS feed on my google reader page rather than the 23 things blog.
Still, the window has been repaired and my PC wasn't very damaged after its multi-storey fall.
I can see the use of the RSS feeds in keeping updated on sites of interest for things such as the latest sports news, or on a professional level any changes to services that a library might want to make known.

Blog thoughts

From peering into the murky depths of some of the many different blogs out there I get the impression that they can be used for varying purposes. From providing details of services available to students/staff in a format that some people will find more accessible than traditional notice boards, through to being nothing more that gossip shops. As we're frequently told that today's students would rather learn online rather than by coming in to use the traditional infrastructure of libraries and colleges I guess that an up to date blog is a convenient way of providing info about what is available to them, and who to contact over particular issues.

Take 2

Last week, with a little help from my friends, and more from the staff development team, I managed to create and customise an I google page , by changing the themes and adding various gadgets as the first stage of the 23 things.

In the begining was the word...

And the word was, well, not web 2.0, but you have to start somewhere I suppose.
So, why am I taking part in the 23 things? Mostly because my initial reaction was to sneer at all this new-fangled technology and then to realise that although I've heard about flickr, blogging etc I don't actually know much about it. Time to learn then. Rather than just talking my way around these cunning online devices, I'd like to get to a vaguely competent standard of using them, and understanding how they can be used both professionally and socially.