Goin' Viral

After a week's rest we learning all about multimedia this week. First step: embed a video. Here's a great YouTube video I found about why being Canadian rocks:



I love YouTube. I'm always astounded by the creativity of some people.

I also did some DIY professional development by checking out an archived library webinar. This one was called Creating a Makerspace Culture and was put on by Booklist. Here are some highlights of what I learned:

• Makerspaces are a combination of media and creativity (tools + support + community) that are multidisciplinary in nature
• Maker Faires are like conventions or exhibitions where "makers" of all shapes and size come to display their creations
• They develop STEAM skills (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art/Aesthetics & Math)
• Common workshops include Programming & Coding, Drawing & Prototyping, Paper & Fabric Craft, Social Growth
• Makerspaces come in all shapes and sizes - don't need to build an addition on your library or invest tonnes of money
• Objective is collaboration and "learning-by-doing"
• Keys to a successful makerspace: Set up the terms of the partnership so that it is beneficial for all; Be open and flexible to new ideas; Plan ahead; Communicate; Make it awesome
• Raspberry Pi is not a dessert - it's more like the guts of a computer that makers learn to assemble and program.
• Crafting and makerspaces go hand-in-hand, but while crafts usually come with directions, "maker culture" is more like self-guided free-styling
• Advice for getting started: Know your audience and their interests; avoid buying lots of equipment at first - pilot with free software and tools

The cool extra thing we were asked to try out was video conferencing. I have never used Skype, but I have used FaceTime and think it's pretty cool. My nieces love calling me with FaceTime and showing off their new clothes or a picture they drew at school. I can see the benefits of using videoconferencing in the workplace. If nothing else, I think it would help with the awkward silences and interruptions that are common with conference calls.

Pinterest

So this week's task was to familiarise ourselves with Pinterest. I signed up for an account and started looking around. It would be very easy to spend hours looking at boards and pinning items as you drill down through layers and get lured off in other directions. I can see the appeal of the site and how it would be useful for libraries. I'm not sure how much I will be using it in my personal life, but maybe as I become more comfortable with it, it will grow on me.

Signing up for an account was no problem. I had a bit of trouble with the Pin It button though. I'm not sure whether I was expecting it to do something it doesn't, or whether it doesn't work with my browser (IE11), but I couldn't do the drag and drop or the install. When I tried right clicking on the image and selecting "Add to Favourites" that seemed to do something. I still don't have the nice little Pinterest icon though. :(

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words

By Inkey (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons

This week's 23 Things module is about using images properly. Our first challenge was to find a Creative Commons image and post it in our blog with the proper attributions. I chose this image, because it reminds me of a trip I took to Albania in 2008. This is Castle Krujë (Croo-yah), an old fort from the Middle Ages which Albanian hero Skanderbeg succesfully defended against the Ottomans on multiple occasions.

I also had fun playing around with Wordle and creating this Olympic-themed word cloud.

Although it is very easy to create images in Wordle, it's not so easy to save them if you want to create a .jpeg or some other image that you can keep. If you opt to save your creation to a public gallery, the tool will give you some HTML code that you can use to post the image to your blog, but you can't control the size. To get this image, I had to take a screenshot, open it in Adobe Photoshop, and create the .jpeg from there. In this regard, I prefer WordItOut, which allows you to save your creations easier.

Finally, I always wondered where all those funny memes come from on Facebook. Now, thanks to 23 Things, I know. The cool extra thing I tried today was creating a movie poster. This one is for my friend Rainey:

Background image by Stuart Caie from Edinburgh, Scotland (Indexed) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Peer Mentoring

While I was reading through some of the other 23 Things participating blogs, I came across this post on the Rainey.me blog that gives instructions on how to embed a carousel on your blog. So here I am trying it out. This is the list I created as one of this weeks "Things".



It's pretty simple if you follow the instructions. At first, the carousel was too big for my text box, but I figured out how to change the size so that it fit nicely within my frame. I'll have to create more lists now so that I display more carousels!

P.S. If the carousel is showing as little blue boxes with spinny circles in them, look for an orange bar at the bottom of the page that says "Only secure content is diplayed" and click on "Show all content".

A Social Catalogue

This week's 23 Things task was to explore the social features of our catalogue. Gone are the days of searching through cards to find a Dewey number. Now we can rate the books we've read, post comments, read reviews and follow fellow bibliophiles! I think it's wonderful. I love the little carousel that shows the covers of books that have been recently reviewed. It's helped me discover some great titles to add to my "For Later" shelf. It's also really convenient to have a "Completed" shelf. I read a lot of series books, and it helps me keep track of what I've already read.

Back in the Swing of Things

I haven't posted to this blog in quite some time, but I'm taking a new training program that requires me to blog about what I've learned, so I thought I'd drag this one out of retirement. What I've learned about blogging so far:

• It takes a lot of commitment. (I've found the best blogs are the ones that are posted to frequently. If there are days or weeks between your posts, your audience thinks you're not serious about it and loses interest).
• It can be a lonely experience. Sometimes it feels like no one ever reads what you write. It makes you wonder, "Why bother?"
• It's a bit narcissistic. When you think about it, bloggers are basically motivated by their desire to let the world know what their opinion is about something. Their opinion is validated by the number of comments, followers or page views they get. The more popular your blog becomes, the better you feel.

Today, because I haven't used this blog in so long, I had to update my template. It's a simple process, but agonizing. There are so many choices! You have to find one that not only you like, but also what you think your audience will like, and what will best suit the subject matter you're blogging about. I'm not totally happy with my choice yet, but the good thing is that I can always go back and change it. :)