IHCPL 2009 Facebook Module

I have had a Facebook account for about a year's time, but I still found this module to be very helpful. I learned a great deal about the available privacy settings. One thing that has frustrated me for some time is when my profile shows up in Google searches. By following the instructions in Nick O'Neill's article: 10 Privacy Settings every Facebook User Should Know, I believe I have corrected this. Because of privacy concerns, I have posted very few photos to Facebook but I do have about 5 on my profile.

I have had fun with the different applications on Facebook. I have used Little Green Patch and The Biggest Brain. My current favorite is Mousehunt. I also enjoy posting news articles and videos for songs that I enjoy on my profile. I have used both the search box and the 'people you might know" tool to add friends.

Edit: I realize after I posted this that I had forgotten to mention that I regularly use my mobile/smart phone to post things to Facebook and to follow what's happening with my friends.

ihcpl #30 s p z drives

The oldest file I could delete from the p drive was from 2006. The oldest file from my z drive was from 2004. I still need to burn some branch photos to cd. I am very familiar with the S drive and once had a near tragedy when the latest version of a power point I was working on for a presentation was deleted. Fortunately I had burned an earlier version onto cd and could remember the changes. Since then, I've stored most things like that in my z drive.

ihcpl #29 Email

I've been weeding through my e-mail gradually since this task was assigned. I still have work to do. One thing that strikes me as I do this is how much junk I receive that has nothing to do with me. I'm not talking about the accidental "reply all" types of messages. I'm talking about the CYA by CC'ing the planet kind of emails. Sigh. Miles to go before I sleep...

ihcpl #28 Spring Cleaning

I was already familiar with David Allen's Getting Things Done. Several people used the system at SEMATECH where I worked previously. The 2 minute rule is the concept I use most often from GTD. About 5 years ago I purchased a Treo. This device is both a cell phone and a PDA (it can also be used to send and check e-mail but I don't use that function). It has been very helpful in keeping me on track for appointments and deadlines.

Week 10 #23 The End

Well, here we are. Frankly, I'm surprised that I finished. Thoughts on the journey: I knew less about some things and more out about other things than I anticipated. Zoho is my favorite new thing... I'm going to introduce Zoho to the high school and junior high students that come into our branch. I still prefer my Yahoo avatar but I'm glad to know about Meez. I'm still sorting through my issues and concerns about online privacy. Sometimes, I wish I could be more open on the web but I am afraid that I will inadvertently get myself in trouble.I'm glad I have a better understanding of new technologies...even only so I don't have to say "I have no idea what you are talking about!" to a patron who asks me for assistance with one of them. Thanks :-)

Week 9 #22 Downloadable Media

I investigated the Overdrive offerings several years ago when Overdrive first became available from HCPL. I downloaded an audio version of Fahrenheit 451 to the player provided to the branches and then I ended up reading the hard copy version anyway (I needed to reread it for Books on the Bayou). I don't think this service will be useful to me unless I purchase a device so that I hook an audio book player into the sound system in my car (if one is even available). I pretty much prefer to read using my eyes (& by turning pages) unless circumstances prevent me from doing so such as when I'm driving. That said, I love having audio books to listen to in the car and my eyesight may not enable me to read text formats forever. LibriVox is really interesting. If I had more time, I would love to volunteer to record for the project WOWIO I am unlikely to use unless I or a patron need to get a hold of something quickly that isn't available any other way.

Week 9 #21 Podcasts

I added feeds to my Bloglines account for http://www.hpprogs.com/ a Harry Potter discussion & news podcast and for http://www.thisamericanlife.org/ a National Public Radio show. I looked at the listed podcast directories and noticed that many of the podcasts I found using keywords seemed to have only 5 or 6 episodes created and then the creators stopped adding them. I think I'm more likely to find podcasts because of word of mouth referrals than I am by searching the directories. That said, I did stumble across the hpprogs podcast because I was searching the directories and I'm glad I did!