Facebook

As this is another Thing that I use fairly regularly, this was very easy for me to use and report back on. Initially I joined Facebook to keep in contact with friends/family whom I don't get to see very often. I quickly got hooked, and then after the initial flurry of excitement generated by sending hatching eggs etc to my friends, it kind of levelled out. I am still using it but have much less time to go on there now, which some might say is a good thing!
I am also using it for educational purposes, as I am a fan of Nuffield College Library, where one of my best friends works. I think that this is a brilliant resource for libraries, as there are regular posts about new books/courses/lectures and great links to resources like JStor and WorldCat as well as Solo, Oxlip+ and e-journals. Also, unlike individual library webpages, the format of Facbook library pages is standardised so fishing around for information is not such a problem. All in all, I think that there is a lot to be said for Facebook and libraries, as long as the readers remember to become fans.

YouTube is fab!

I love YouTube! I often use it, mainly for listening to random music and also and for looking at childhood tv shows! While this has been great fun, it has not been hugely educational so I looked at YouTube Edu channel and found lots of universities listed. The variety of videos on the various pages were fascinating, and gave me a bit of an insight into what life at the various institutions would be like, as well as projects and talks that they have hosted. Now, back to some more YouTube research...

The joy of podcasts

This Thing was great! I have subscribed to the feeds of a couple of podcasts, a couple from the BBC and one from Podcast.com, on which I found an amazing series dedicated to discussing horror in film, literature, pop culture, mythology and legend. It is a little strange to be listening to podcasts in the library, even though I listen to music when I am shelving; perhaps it is the length of time of some of the podcasts, and the fact that I am actually sat at my desk, which makes me feel like a slacker! I think this is a great way to inform students about library developments/innovations, especially as they can download things to suit them, rather than having to make timed slots for courses etc. All in all, I was very impressed with this Thing!

Sweet and sour?

Having been immensely busy for most of this month, I am finally getting back to blogging. I had to take a quick tour around Delicious again to refresh my memory, and found the 23 Things blog helpful in instructing me about using the Web 2.0 directory to find libraries that I can add to my network. I have found Delicious useful in terms of looking at the bookmarks of various people and libraries as it has enabled me to find resources that I would not necessarily have found out about for months and has added to my perception of how Web 2.0 can enhance information sharing. I have not always found the site very easy to use however, and have found that despite adding people/libraries to my network, these have not always been added when I have re-checked later. Nonetheless, it is a useful tool and one that I hope to make a lot more use of.

Delicious tastes ok

Well, I have to confess that as we have been very busy lately I have neglected the 23 Things programme a little, but managed to remember after a minute or two that the last time I was active I had got around to signing up for Delicious, saving and tagging some web sites and looking at what other people have saved (as well as saving some of their offerings myself). As well as being quite simple to use, I also liked this because it is a good way of finding resources and sharing intelligence on different topics.