Thing 6: Flickr Mashups

I looked at Flickr Mashups and explored a bit. The thing that is most frustrating for me is that when you put in a term (eye, heart, lighthouse, whatever) you get all kinds of photos that do not seem to be related to what I want at all. I have always used Google images or Good Search images and had no problem finding what I want. I CAN spend time looking at all the choices to find just the right thing. Anyway, I used Good Search Images to find these individual pictures, saved them to my pictures, then inserted them into a Publisher page. Once I had them arranged the way I wanted, I grouped them and saved that as a picture. I then inserted that "picture" into my blog. This took me about 10 minutes which was a lot faster than it would have taken me with Flickr Mashups. Also, I wanted to select the image I used for each letter which I was able to do. Using Spell with Flickr, did not allow me to pick the image I wanted for each letter. Working with handicapped students, I have to be very literal, so I select my images very carefully. I also have to consider my vision-impaired students.
This was fun to play with and I would like to incorporate some of these pictures into some of the SMART Board lessons I am creating. I already use this technique to create posters, flyers, forms, newsletters, etc.

Thing 5 -- Flickr

I hate to keep repeating myself and sounding negative but why Flickr? My daughter advised me not to read all the stuff about it and just jump in and try it. I ended up very frustrated and had to go back to the beginning and read. I still haven't figured out how to make this work for me. I have also confirmed the fact that I am the kind of person who learns best by being in a class or workshop with a live person demonstrating how to use these things. That is how I have always learned what I know about the new technology. I learned to use Google Images (which is now blocked by the school board for inappropriate material) and Good Search Images to find the pictures I want. Then I save them and insert them into Publisher (my program of choice) or Power Point or whatever. These searches seem much more efficient than trying to use Flickr. I have been doing this for years to create posters, flyers, calendars, newsletters, invitations, etc. and I think I have gotten pretty good at it.

I did sign up for a Flickr account but I seem to have lost it or I am unable to access it. I have added a couple of pictures to my favorites so I will see if I can upload them.

Okay, I could not figure out how to upload. So I found this picture on Flickr by doing a search for "Hershey's Kisses" (my favorite candy) Not everything that was found had to do with Hershey's kisses -- shoes, bird on a wire, toilets, etc. I also found some things that are inappropriate for a school setting so I would have to think carefully about using this at school with my students. Once I found this picture, I saved it to "My Pictures" and then inserted it by selecting the picture icon and browsing my pictures. I selected this picture because I love lighthouses and kisses. I think this is kinda cool. I collect lighthouses and I have visited several in Maine, Florida, and other places on the east coast. This is a west coast lighthouse so it is new to me. Oh, the picture is by stormygirl. When I saved the picture, the info was not saved with it which is kind of a pain because I had to go back and find the original picture and write down the name of the photographer. Well, I have to go teach a class in 2 minutes and I have been working on this for about an hour and a half. Time to move on.

Thing 4 -- RSS and Newsreaders

Will someone please tell me if this is going to get fun? I don't know. Maybe I am missing something. I have spent the entire afternoon on this Thing. And here in North Central Florida it is a beautiful Sunday afternoon -- sunny, light breeze, a great day to be outside and I am stuck inside here at the computer. GRRRRRR. My neck and shoulders hurt. The only good thing is that there is a bird feeder just outside the window I am next to and there have been lots of birds around -- cardinals, finches, a blue jay.
Anyway, I read the info on RSS feeds and watched the video. These videos are really helpful. I used Google Reader to set up an account. But then I could not find anything to subscribe to. None of my keywords came up with any sites or blogs that I was interested in. Next I searched through my bookmarks to find RSS feeds on my favorite sites. Of the 45 bookmarks, only one had an RSS icon. And I could not get that one to work! So I went back to the NEFLIN 23 Things blog and used some of the feeds they had identified. I did find a few interesting sites to check out. But it all comes down to time again. When will I have time to sit and read these articles???? I rarely read the newspaper, except on Sunday and not always then. I do listen to the local news on tv in the morning while I am getting dressed and eating breakfast. If I am home at 6 or 6:30, I usually watch the news while I am cooking, eating, or cleaning up dinner. I listen to the radio in the car while I am driving to and from work. I have stacks of magazines at home and at work that I am saving to read sometime but I don't know when. (And my family and my boss really want me to clear this stuff out.) But I don't know when I would ever access this Google Reader to read more stuff. I can't do that at work because I have too much to do. Also, most of my favorite websites have a place for me to enter my email address and they send me new info as it comes out. I get it when I am already checking my email.
So, I don't know how I would use this in either my personal or professional life. I did find one useful item and that was a site or blog on Library Grants. I would use that to apply for grants for the school library.
I really feel like I just don't get it or I am missing something.

Thing 3 -- Blog Search Engines

Well, my first reaction is . . . blogging -- why? who cares? Why would I want to spend my valuable time reading the ramblings of strangers? But, I gave it a try. I looked at Technorati. I did enjoy looking at the White House blog and I will use some of this in my teaching. With Technorati, I found there was lots of repetition from one tab to another. I can get a lot of this information from TV or radio or the newspaper. I would much rather listen to the radio while I am driving, or have the local TV news on while I am getting dressed, making my bed, packing my lunch, and eating breakfast in the morning. On the week-ends, I enjoy sitting down with a cup of tea and the newspaper. It is much easier, time efficient, and more enjoyable that having to turn on the computer, wait for it all to come on, and search for this kind of info. I don't quite understand Technorati Authority. Isn't it just another popularity contest? Just because a blog is popular does not mean it is authoritative. I felt maybe I was missing something. So, I decided to compare 3 different blog searching tools: Technorati, Google Blog Search, and Ice Rocket. Since I am a cross-stitcher, I decided I would look for cross-stitch blogs. In Technorati, I found 4,000 + blogs but I got some blogs for "Lilo and Stitch" (not exactly what I was looking for). I did get hung up here trying to print free patterns. Again, where is there enough time to do this? I tried Google Blog Search and got 300,000+ blogs. How do you sort these out? I would like to note that when I first set up this blog for the 23 Things, I just went to Google and searched "cross stitch blogs" and I think that search was just as satisfactory. I also tried Ice Rocket and got 13,000+ blogs. I liked that I could read a short entry before I selected a blog. This helped me weed out blogs I was not interested in.
One pet peeve that I have about blogs is the lack of correct spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Why don't people review and correct their blog posts before publishing them? It is not that difficult but if it is not done it makes one look ignorant or at least careless. If you don't care enough to spell and write properly, why should I care enough to read your blog?
And I still maintain that I would rather spend my time cross-stitching than sitting at a computer blogging and reading about everyone else's cross-stitching. It has occurred to me that I might find new patterns or ideas of things I would like to stitch or gadgets that I would like to have but between the local cross-stitch shop and the online "Needlework Show", I have enough ways to spend my money!!

Thing 2-Last comment

I am finally back to 23 Things even though I am still on Thing 2. I have read all the articles and I have a few comments that I want to make and then I will move on. First of all, I really don't like reading the computer screen, so I printed the suggested reading articles, put them in a notebook (Katy thinks this is really silly) and carried them with me to read when I had a chance. I read a couple of them while waiting at the doctor's office. So, here are my reactions.
"Away from the 'Icebergs'" by Rick Anderson
This gentleman is employed at an academic library and I believe that he is out of touch with public schools. Does he assume that everyone has a computer with internet access? I work with students who are developmentally delayed but just a couple of years ago I was working with students from very low income families. These were families who were struggling to stay in a home and even put food on the table. Sometimes the only meals these students got were the meals served at school. They don't have computers, let alone internet access. Mr. Anderson comments that the print library system "worked moderately well for those privileged with access to a good library." People have to be privileged to be able to have a computer and internet access. Any public library is more accessible to low income families struggling to avoid homelessness than a computer and internet access.
"Into a New World of Librarianship" by Michael Stephens
Does Librarian 2.0 have any kind of personal life outside the library????
"To a Temporary Place in Time" by Dr. Wendy Schultz
She is right "Digital natives take 2.0 for granted". My children do not know of life without computers, internet access, cell phones, facebook, my space, instant messaging, etc. They expect that it will all be there for them to use any time of the day or night and it is. Being a digital immigrant and having experienced life without all of this, I sometimes question the need for all this access. I grew up, received an excellent education, work in a professional career of my choice and got along fine without all these "things". Okay, I admit this computer is much easier to type on and edit than the old manual typewriter that I used 27 years ago as I worked my way through graduate school!
"To More Powerful Ways to Cooperate" by Chip Nilges
Sorry, I don't even understand what he is writing about. I would have to do a lot more research and reading to grasp these concepts.
"Library 2.0" from Wikipedia
I really do like this definition of Library 2.0. It is one I can understand. But haven't libraries in any form always attempted "to harness the library user in the design and implementation of library services by encouraging feedback and participation." Isn't this what surveys, suggestion boxes, circulation reports, stats about number of patrons at certain times and days, boards, Friends of the Library are all about? We have always asked for input and feedback from our patrons. Michael Casey is quoted as describing the "need for libraries to adopt a strategy for constant change". School libraries (where I work) have always done this with collection development plans, equipment plans, policies for accepting donations and for censorship. As technology has progressed so have school libraries and haven't all libraries? I have replaced reel-to-reel tape recorders and record players with cassette players that have been replaced with CD players. I have replaced filmstrip projectors and 16mm movie projectors with video tape players that have been replaced with DVD players. I have just replaced the TV in the library with a SMART Board that shows DVDs through the computer. It should be noted that the one thing that does prevent the library from moving forward is budget constraints. I would love to add a document camera, a digital camera, a flip video to the library. Really, I would like to add a digital camera, a flip video, and a SMART Board for every teacher in my school. There is no money to purchase these items or provide the teachers with the training needed to properly use these items to the fullest extent. I'm not sure I'm even going to have money to buy this year's award winning books. And the next few years don't look much more promising with regards to budget. As a matter of fact, I will be happy just to keep my full-time job!!

Thing 2-How?

How has the Internet and the vast resource it can be affected your use of time at work and/or at home?
At work, in the school library media center, I use the internet to find information, activities for my classes, pictures. Although I still love my story about the classroom teacher who wanted to find out how many cities in the USA were named "Gainesville." I overheard her talking about this in the library and I went to the geographical dictionary, looked it up, and had the answer for her in just a minute. She was frustrated because she had spent several days on the internet trying to find the answer. So, I was proud of my library training and understanding that you have to know your resources.
Sometimes, I get frustrated searching the internet because it is not set up like the old card catalog. You have to get the term you are searching for dead-on or it can be difficult to find. And, I never understood "Ask Jeeves". Who asks the butler for reference information? Well, I suppose some very rich people might (do you think Paris Hilton asks her butler how many cities are named Gainesville?) but the vast majority of us do not have butlers. I have always thought it should have been "Ask Marion" because we all have free access to librarians!
I do use the internet at work and at home. I have shared web-sites with other teachers or demonstrated how to do searches. I can get caught up in the internet and loose track of time. I have been late to lunch, missed my chance to go to the bathroom, worked late until the principal makes me go home because I was on the internet searching for information or activities for my classes. I have been very pleased with some of the access I have to things. An example of something coming up: Monday is Groundhog Day. Instead of just reading a book about it, I can pull up the Punsxatawny Phil website, and show my students pictures of a groundhog, the celebration surrounding him and his prediction for this year. In November, I got a SMART Board so I will be able to do this on a big screen that everyone can see. What fun!!
At home, I have used the internet to find info on my interests - cross-stitch and needlework, lighthouses, Mark Lindsay (former lead singer for Paul Revere and the Raiders), storytelling, puppets. I have also been able to answer questions for my mom and pull up information about her interests. The other use I have made of the internet is to search for medical information -- for myself and my family members. Again, I can get caught up in the internet and loose track of time.

Thing 2--Why?

Why am I participating in 23 Things at NEFLIN? What do I hope to learn?
Ever since NEFLIN folks started talking about 23 Things I was intrigued. I felt this was a good way to learn about things with some guidance. While I wanted to know more about blogs, wikis, social networking, etc., I did not have the time or motivation to just do it or to do it in a random, haphazard way. It made sense to me to participate in this program to learn about new things in an organized way. As a school media specialist and the school's tech person, I feel I have a responsibility to try to stay educated and informed about technology. Also, being a life-long learner has been ingrained in me since a very young age. I don't know how anyone can ever be bored - there is so much to learn, do, read, experience, see - I can never do it all.
I hope to learn as much as I can about these 23 things so that I can decide what is worthwhile to pursue, to share with my co-workers and students, and to use in my everyday life to make it more rewarding, to make more efficient use of my time, to learn. And I will admit, I love the idea of getting a prize, too!