Thursday, May 28, 2009

Week 10 - Gaming

I have a bit of an additive personality, so I tend to get addicted to any games I start playing! I used to play tetris obsessively and more recently, I've started using my sister's Nintendo DS and Wii, which are both great fun. I tried out a few games in the exercise and found them easy to use, but there's no threat to the serious gamer here!! I read the article about gaming in the library context, and I'm not at all convinced that there's any place for gaming in a library context, unless you have loads of money! To do a proper job, you'd have to get an expert to design the game and, while it might spice up the traditional library tour, would the expense be justified?

Thursday, May 21, 2009

A funny description of twitter in real life!

Week 9 part 2 - Instant Messaging & Twitter

I've used IM quite a bit between Skype, MSN Chat and now Facebook and it's a great way of communicating in real time (as they say!). I have also seen how libraries can use it quite effectively to get the whole 24/7 thing going. The only problem with IM is that people want an instant answer which meant that somebody has to be on hand to answer the questions immediately, which could prove difficult in some libraries.

Twitter, on the other hand, I don't get at all. Why would people be interested in the minute details of my (or anyone elses) life? Although, people must be with it's popularity. I have to say the Common Craft video did a great job explaining it and, it did make me want to look at it again! When I was looking at Youtube last week, I found a brilliant video that shows twitter in real life, which I'm going to try to attach and it sums up twitter for me!!

Week 9 - facebook

I've managed to stay away from social networking sites up until now and I suppose this exercise was a good way to force me to have a look at them! I'm just not sure if I'm that social! I decided to try Facebook, as I knew some people on it already, and I just set up my profile and I have one friend so far!! I can see how it could be addictive for socialising (if you're in to that type of thing!) but I'm not sure if a library has a place on it. I suppose it's a marketing tool, and looking at the UCD Library site, it does have fans, but I'm not convinced of the effectiveness. Anyway, it must take a lot of time to keep it updated!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Last part of week 8 - Ebooks and Audio Books

I've been a fan of audio books since they were on audio cassette, and it's even better that they can be downloaded now. They are a great idea and have a huge place in libraries, particularly for people with sight difficulties. Now that I've found AudiobooksForFree.com, I'll have to start doing some more downloading!
Electronic books also have a place in Libraries, especially for Academic Libraries where a student might only need a couple of chapters - it will mean that the books won't go missing, or they won't be able to rip the pages out anymore - how great!! I couldn't imagine using a sony reader or laptop myself though to read a novel, it somehow takes the fun out of it.

SitePal, Podcasts and LastFM

I had a look at SitePal and, like others, decided not to give my credit card details, so didn't spend too long at it. I did send an email though but don't know if I see great value in this tool. I know that research shows that it improves takeup of products, but I would just find the voice annoying and a lot of the characters are a bit creepy! I suppose it's down to personal taste really!

Podcasts, on the other hand, I'm a huge fan of and have been downloading for quite a while. It's also a great way of catching up on any radio shows you've missed, especially if you're a Gift Grub fan! These can really be used in libraries, as the UL podcast tour and others like it show.

I suppose LastFM is a bit like the music version of LibraryThing - interest and I'll have to have a better look at it some other time!

Week 8 - YouTube

YouTube is great for getting another look at the really good or really bad acts on Britain's got talent - Stavros Flatley was one really funny example! Browsing through it for this exercise (something I've never done before) I've realised how much rubbish there is on it - people adding their own random thoughts and their own productions - again I find myself asking "why?" on this journey!! Looking at it in a library context, I've found the Common Craft videos really simple to understand and a great way to learn, and I was also at a talk that someone from UCD gave where they made some videos to explain how to use Self Issue machines, so I can see that YouTube could be useful in a library context - if you only had the time.

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Week 7

As with most people, I've used wikipedia on occasion and found it very useful, and I can also see the value in using a wiki for a manual, as it's constantly changing, but I don't think I'd have the patience for one myself - wouldn't it just be easier to talk to the people involved rather than creating a wiki for a camping trip?!! Perhaps I would have got more value out of it if I had been able to make the lunchtime talk. It's over now though and that's the main thing!!