Is this really the end? Or just the beginning.....

Well, this is the end of this stage - I am sure there is much more to learn in the future.

I wish I had more time to learn more about the wonderful learning resourses that are available on the Internet. Between work, being a mother and now a grandmother, juggling the time to learn many new internet skills can be challenging indeed. Maybe some day I will find time to sharpen my skills in these areas.

The Learnning 2.0 program has been very interesting. It would have been great if all of the links on the excersises worked and I also would have benefited if the exercises were more presciptive. I found that some trial and error and assistance was needed to accomplish the exercises, but overall it has been a great learning experience.

A friend of mine pointed out that the program was probably called Learning 2.0 because it highlights the new resourses that are available for learning purposes. Learning is what libraries are about and all of the concepts we learnt about, while working on the exercises, are learning resourses. The 'trick' is to make sure that when we introduce something like audiobooks to libraries that we make sure that traditional ways of learning are also avaliable.

It is good that we are able to learn and apply these skills. I am grateful for this learning opportunity and to be part of a team at our Library that caters for everyone. I will definitely make an effort to continue learning and using my newly acquired skills!

Audiobooks - The End Is Very Near

The death of books?

I don't think so. First of all they are charging an arm and a leg for something you can't even touch. Can you imagine a cook book or a reference book in an audio format? I found that only the 'story' type books were useful in this format.

Once again half of the links on the Learning 2.0 web site don't work. And the ones that did had very few Audiobook titles compared to eBooks.

Long live paper books!!!!!!!!!

Podcasts

Two of the three podcast directories for that we were given to try out did not work. I mainly used Google to find podcasts that I liked. I found an interesting one on Greek news that I added as an RSS feed to my Bloglines account.

The main use I can see for podcasts in libraries is the same as books. The library can subscribe/purchase high quality podcasts that may not be affordable by all patrons and they can then view/listen to these podcasts at the library. This will also make podcasts available to people that may not have the equipment to view podcasts at home.

YouTube Grandma Style

I have decided that I like YouTube. Not only can I find videos of old shows that I have seen in the past I can also find instructional videos like the one below of Nigela Lawson cooking up an old-fashioned choc cake.



I am a bit worried that this kind of technology will be the end of books in years to come. Young people will prefer to look up a video to find out how something is done instead of borrowing and reading a book. I can see what I have been asked to participate in the Learning 2.0 program.

Online Productivity and Web 2.0 Tools

Online productivity tools are fantastic. All I need is a computer with a web browser installed and I can create and modify documents without having software like MS Office installed on my computer.

The Web 2.0 Award had some great websites listed. One of my favourites was www.imcooked.com. This website allows anyone to videotape themselves cooking and describing their receipt and then post it on the web site.

What I Know Is...

Wiki's are fascinating. Imagine a web site with lots of information that is contributed to by people from all around the world. The advantage of the Wiki format is that no-one has to be responsible for putting up the information or getting other people to do it. People just add and update information when they want.

Libraries around the world are using wikis for all sorts of things like, book reviews and even how to run libraries like: http://libsuccess.org/

I would like to see a Wiki in the library that shows the patrons how to use the library facilities and outlines the rules of the library. This way patrons could add any useful ideas they have.

Delicious, but not about cooking!

This week. You won't find anything about cooking in my blog but you will find something delicious. Delicious and Technorati are tagging sites which means that their content is categorised by users like you and me.

The future of Libraries...
Wow, reading some of the perspectives offered on the future of libraries and the role of Web 2.0 and Learning 2.0 made me really think about the role of librarians. Looks like I will have to stop cooking for my family and sit at my computer a lot more to get more educated and more comfortable with all of the emerging technologies that will contribute to the way users interact with libraries.