Week 9, Thing 23: The End...

It may be the end of the 23 Things program for this summer, but learning never ends. I can't believe how fast this went by. I thought this project sounded like fun and I'm really glad I did it. I got a lot out of each different "thing" and as I look back on my posts, I can see how many new things I was able to try that I might not have ever known about without this program. Just today, I learned something new. I was finally able to figure out (with some help!) how to post a video clip onto my blog. The library environment is a place that promotes learning and new technology and I'm glad that I'm a part of it. Sometimes all this new stuff can be a bit scary, but it's good to learn about even if you never use it again. I think my favorite "things" came in week 3 (photos and images) and week 5 (play week). There was a lot of fun and interesting stuff to do in those weeks. I would definitely like to try a discovery program like this again and I would suggest that it be done in the summer again because there is more free time to be able to sit and do something like this. I had a lot of fun, learned a lot of things, and I'm glad that I was able to finish it in the 9 weeks given. Happy learning everyone!

Beckham meets Bush

I was finally able to post the actual YouTube clip onto my blog from Thing 20! Thank you, Peggy, for all your help. :)It worked!

Week 9, Thing 22: Downloadable Audiobooks

This exercise was probably the least interesting to me out of all of them so far. I think audiobooks tend to be on two different ends of the spectrum: there are people who can't live without them and then there are people who can't stand them. I don't really think there is middle ground with audiobooks. I, for one, am definitely not a big fan. I have listened to a few different audiobooks over the years and for some reason, it makes reading more of a chore for me. I have a really hard time remembering what I heard ("read") as opposed to when I sit down and read the book myself. The only instance where it worked well for me was using an audiotape to listen to Shakespeare's "Othello" for a literature class, and even then I read along in the book as I was listening. Okay, enough about me and audiobooks. :) I went to CCPL's website to see if I could find one of the free subscription audiobook services. Sure enough, it was right there on the front page. CCPL uses Overdrive eBooks. Once I logged in, I browsed around a bit, looking at the classic literature and nonfiction sections as well as some of the movie titles. I also tried searching for some subjects and authors, but for some reason it didn't pull up any results. Overall, I think this is a nice tool for people to use, but I probably won't be one of them!

Week 9, Thing 21: Podcasts

I've never really used podcasts before, so this was interesting for me. Before I explored some of the directories (because I really didn't know what I wanted to look for), I went to the website of the radio station where my dad works, WRBS, because I knew there were archived podcasts from some of the morning shows. So, I listened to some of those to kind of understand how podcasts work and get the feel for them. I looked at all the directories, but the only one I really liked and found the most useful was Podcast Alley. There were a couple reasons. One, I found a link right away to the top 50 podcasts that were listened to the most. Two, I was able to look at podcasts by genre and that allowed me to more easily pick out one that I thought would be interesting to listen to. I clicked on the Sports and Recreation section and found one within the top 50 called "Cup Car Update." As you might guess, it's about NASCAR. :) I listened to it, liked it, and added it to my Bloglines account. I will definitely be coming back to Podcast Alley to find more because I like how it's set up and I find it really easy to use.

Week 9, Thing 20: YouTube

Finally, a tool that I've used before! YouTube is a lot of fun; unfortunately, you can waste a lot of time on there browsing videos. It's amazing how quickly it has exploded in popularity. People use it for so many different things. I personally like it for watching music videos and other stuff from my favorite bands. The video clip I chose for this post is Beckham meets Bush. That would be David Beckham meeting Reggie Bush of the Saints, not President Bush. There was a little blurb about it in the most recent Sports Illustrated, so I decided to check it out. I chose this video because 1) I'm nuts about sports and 2) Reggie is just so darn cute! Plus, this was probably the least-hyped Beckham thing of the whole week and I love it when two athletes who are stars in their respective sports are able to meet each other. It's neat how the whole place is empty except for them and a camera crew. I was very inept at attempting to post the video in my blog (couldn't quite figure that out), so just click on the link to watch it. There is also a 6 minute version that is fun to watch, especially the part where Becks has to help Reggie tie his cleats!

Week 8, Thing 19: Web 2.0 Awards sites

I selected travel as my category and clicked on a site called Real Travel. According to the Web 2.0 awards list, you can "Read users’ advice about their travel experiences and use RealTravel’s Free Trip Planner to map out your ideal vacation. You can also create blogs to share your trips with others." It sounded interesting and when I explored it, I found out what a great tool it was. This site is a fantastic way to find out about different travel destinations from real people who have been there and want to share their experiences. Searching by country and/or city is fun because you can then search for very specific things, such as things to do on a cruise to that place or where the best restaurants are in that city. There are also great travel photos to look at and blogs to read, as well as a section to find deals and compare prices. There are so many great resources just in this one site. It's great for any traveler!

Week 8, Thing 18: Online productivity tools

I was aware that Microsoft Office was not the "be all and end all" for creating spreadsheets, documents, and other such things. However, I didn't realize how simple it was to do all these things online with help from Google, Zoho, and other services. I tried out Google Docs for this exercise and I was very impressed. The layout when creating a document is similar to Word, but the toolbar is much less cluttered and easier to use. I just made one simple test document, but I was able to find everything I needed very quickly. It's also very easy to rename. I really like how this program allows you to save a file in many different formats depending on your needs. I can see this being useful as a backup of sorts and I think it's a great tool.