I feel like I have come so far in such a short amount of time. I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to discover Web 2.0 in such a fun and creative way. Without a doubt, I know that Mesquite librarians work in the best district. The support that has been given to us by Mary and Debbie and the whole staff at Library Services has been incredible.
This being my first year, I am overwhelmed with all that a librarian actually does. I guess it's much like I felt my first year of teaching. I see that the role of the library and the librarian is changing rapidly. We have to keep up or be left behind. My only option is to keep up. I know that I will continue posting my learning to my blog. I love the idea of keeping an online journal to track my progress and see where I have been. What was life like before Flickr? It's hard to imagine now. My avatar reminds me of why I love being a girl and playing dress up. Myspace connects my professional and personal life. As controversial as that is, I love it. Although, I have to have a time limit or I lose track and get carried away. I know that as I learn more about the library and what my role truly is, I will go back to some of these tools I have discovered and use them. By using Web 2.0 tools in the library, I hope to encourage others to discover some of what the web has to offer.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Thing #23 Creative Commons
Wow, Thing #23. I was not excited about doing this because frankly, dealing with copyright is one of my least favorite things to do. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Creative Commons makes a lot of sense to me. My understanding is that CC gives people the right to protect parts of what they have created or not. I like that it isn't an all or nothing deal. My understanding of fair use has also increased. I learned that fair use can include parodies and spoofs. The main thing is that whatever is being used is different than it was intended to be used as. Wow, that's really hard to explain. This video I found was inmates doing the Thriller dance. Michael Jackson intended for his dance and video to sell records and promote his career. Well, these inmates did not have that intention so it is OK to use the song and dance.
I see that the internet has really changed copyright because information is abundant. You can get almost anything by doing an online search. I like the thought that by working together, we can refine and improve upon already good ideas. CC allows people to add, expand, and edit ideas, pictures, music, and documents to fit different needs. One of the articles I read, said that someone created a commercial for Apple and placed it on YouTube. Instead of suing that person, Apple bought the commercial because they liked it so much. I see CC as a win-win situation.
In the library, this does make things a little more sticky when it comes to copyright. We all have so much yet to learn about how the Internet is going to influence copyright. Changes are happening and we have to go with the flow.
I see that the internet has really changed copyright because information is abundant. You can get almost anything by doing an online search. I like the thought that by working together, we can refine and improve upon already good ideas. CC allows people to add, expand, and edit ideas, pictures, music, and documents to fit different needs. One of the articles I read, said that someone created a commercial for Apple and placed it on YouTube. Instead of suing that person, Apple bought the commercial because they liked it so much. I see CC as a win-win situation.
In the library, this does make things a little more sticky when it comes to copyright. We all have so much yet to learn about how the Internet is going to influence copyright. Changes are happening and we have to go with the flow.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Thing 22 Animoto
This was so much fun. I learned so much from this site. At first when I saw what others had created, I was worried, but it was so easy. I linked my Animoto account to my Flickr account but it was taking forever so I clicked on one of the handy help features and downloaded a program that resizes picture files. This was an great help. It made my picture files much smaller and easier to upload. I didn't quite figure out how to put my own music with the video. I bet I can if I play with it a bit longer. I would love to make a short video for Children's Book Week or one to promote the book fair. The problem I see is sharing the videos with parents or staff. It is so easy to post to a blog or myspace account, but many of these web applications do not seem to go with out Contribute program for the library web pages. I see this as a big obstacle in using these awesome programs with the intent to share with students, parents, and staff. Maybe this is where we realize we have to create a myspace for the library.
Thing 21 Podcasts
I learned that the difference between an audio file and a podcast is that a podcast has regular episodes. You must subscribe to a podcasts to have the episodes delievered to your Google Reader or other outlet. I use iTunes so the episodes are saved there for me. I subcribed to Pottercast which discusses all thing Harry Potter. I also signed up for Radio Willow Web which is different grade levels reporting on various topics from fish to ants to sound. Of course you can put the podcasts onto your iPod, but you do not have to. I think this is a great way for students to share what they have learned in a meaningful way for an actual audience. I looked through several podcast directories and found some interesting book reviews and other library podcasts. There is so much out there that it is overwhelming. I would love to use this in the library for book reviews.
Thing 20 YouTube
Wow, I had no idea how much stuff you can find on YouTube. I love the laughing babies. I laughed so hard, I woke my husband up. There is so much that I had trouble narrowing things down. I tried libraries and librarians and got some stuff. I have actually used YouTube at school during research with 5th grade. We watched clips of Man vs. Wild during our Biome unit. The product was to create a list of things you would need in a survival pack for a biome you would choose to live in, so these clips were perfect. Just like anything that you use from the web, you have to be super careful of what content comes up with what you are searching for. When I searched Man vs. Wild, there were many paraody clips that people made. You have to preview everything. It was fun and everyone uses YouTube. Some of the questions for the Presidential debates actually came from YouTube so that tells me that we have to get on board with this and find ways to utilize this service in the classroom and the library.
Thing 19
I tried out 2 different sites for this exercise. The first was Gliffy.
This site allows users to create flowcharts using boxes, circles, and graphics. It is super simple to use. It is a click and drag process. I am wondering if it might work with the Promethean Board. . . I'll have to check when I get back to school. You can create multiflow maps, single flow maps, and even floor plans. I could have used the floor plan application during some of my library classes that required us to draw our library. Students could use this to create dream rooms or houses. Students could create the bedroom of a favorite character. The product of a project could be create what you think Fern's, from Charlotte's Web, bedroom might look like. You can add images by doing a Yahoo search and dragging the images onto the floor plan. Fun and functional!
I also played with Bubbl.us. This is an easy graphic organizer that is very much like Kidspiration. You can type in a main idea and then create bubbles that go with that idea. You can save your documents and make them public if you like. I couldn't find a way to post it to a blog though. There are many obvious ways that you could use this in the library or in the classroom. I think that if I want teachers and kids to use this, I will have to link it to the school library website for easy access.
This site allows users to create flowcharts using boxes, circles, and graphics. It is super simple to use. It is a click and drag process. I am wondering if it might work with the Promethean Board. . . I'll have to check when I get back to school. You can create multiflow maps, single flow maps, and even floor plans. I could have used the floor plan application during some of my library classes that required us to draw our library. Students could use this to create dream rooms or houses. Students could create the bedroom of a favorite character. The product of a project could be create what you think Fern's, from Charlotte's Web, bedroom might look like. You can add images by doing a Yahoo search and dragging the images onto the floor plan. Fun and functional!
I also played with Bubbl.us. This is an easy graphic organizer that is very much like Kidspiration. You can type in a main idea and then create bubbles that go with that idea. You can save your documents and make them public if you like. I couldn't find a way to post it to a blog though. There are many obvious ways that you could use this in the library or in the classroom. I think that if I want teachers and kids to use this, I will have to link it to the school library website for easy access.
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