Week 8, Thing 19 - sites from Web 2.0 awards

I was plesently surprise to find many of the sites that I use on this list of award winners. I liked using this site as well because it gave me more choices of web sites to try on topics that intrest me. By having a list of good web sites you can easily try a few sites which will help you determine which site works best for you. I could see the library having a link to this site on its web page or using this site when recommeding resouces to customers. For example if someone is looking for an event that is happening in Baltimore County, staff could refer the customer to this web site to look for information on the event.

Week 8, Thing 18 - online profuctivity

I tried Zoho Writer. This site offered many programs that people would use. I was excited to see that the word document had many of the functions and buttons I use in Microsoft Word. I found the site easy to use. My concerns about using sites like these are how slow the Internet may be running and who can see the documents. The upside to these sites are that others can see the documents and that I can access the document anywhere that has Internet access. This way I don't have to worry about forgetting my jump drive.

Week 7 thing 17 Sandbox wiki

It was easy to add my blog to the list of other blogs in the favorite blogs page of the Maryland Libraries Sandbox.

Week 7 thing 16 Wiki

I was kind of sceptical about actual uses of Wiki sites because many people could add to and change the contents of the information. As I explored some of the wiki sites I began to understand the usefulness these sites provide. I looked at Wiki travel and got some great information and opinion on how to get around and links to things to do while I am there. I also looked at a wiki how to site that I found very interesting. So I looked up how to pack a suitcase. What I found was a step by step process of how to pack a suitcase, but what I got out of the information was some useful tips for better packing. I think it is very useful to know that anyone can edit the information on a Wiki site because your use of the information is different. I can see wiki sites as a collaborative effort to put together idea sharing and the reader picking and choosing the information he or she finds useful to them.

Week 6 Thing 14 Technorati

The Technorati web site alows you to search and veiw sites or blogs. I enjoyed viewing the popular or new sites offered. I found some interesting topics like tips for power point presentations and the latest stars gossip. I did find it difficult to find specific topics of information using the search function. I tried searching for infomation on team faciliation and I received large amounts of results. Even when using some of the advanced features I still got about 6,000 results. After veiwing 4 pages of the results I still did not find any information I was looking for. However, Technorati is anouther source of searching for information on the web.

Week 6, Thing 13 Del.icio.us

Right away I saw the potential for libraries to use the Del.icio.us web site. I think that having an area where people can add sites to one book marked page will be helpful in an environment where you use multiple computers. I know my department uses the bookmark feature on individual computers for work related sites and the Del.icio.us site will allow us to put the information in one location instead of finding the computer that has that site bookmarked.

One thing I did not like about the site was its appearance. To me it just looks to technical and as a result might hinder some users who are not as comfortable with technology.

Week 5 Thing 11 - Library Thing

The Library Thing site is a great site for people who enjoy reading and like to share their thoughts and feelings about what they are reading. I think this site can be very useful for library staff when recommending titles for customers to read. I can also see this site being useful as a virtual book club of sorts or for reading contests.